Participating in a Sprint Triathlon to Raise Money for Cleft Lip and Palate

Last week I ran a 5km race to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. I managed to raise past my target. I knew a young woman who had a double mastectomy at quite a young age. My dad died of liver cancer. As far as I'm concerned if I can push some money towards the charities based on my participation in a sporting event then I will. If I can get my friends, family and network to encourage me to push harder and contribute to the cause I'm running for I'm not shy to ask for support!

This coming weekend, on June 27th, I will be doing a sprint triathlon to raise money for SMILE TRAIN, a charity founded with the intention of providing free cleft lip and palate surgeries to any family affected. Examples are shown below.

 This cause is special to me. We are friends with a neighborhood couple who have a son who was born with cleft lip and palate. Liam is a funny, gentle, loving and hug-every-time kid. He hangs out with our kids and together the three of them are a force of nature...young boy attitudes with a laugh for every occasion. He knows he was born with cleft lip and palate and just gets on with it. Fortunately he had surgery when he was 10 weeks old and additional surgeries since. The photos below show him at 10 weeks old before surgery and his handsome face in a photo taken at 5 years old, about 2 weeks after a plastic “revision” surgery to give more symmetry to his lip and nose. He is now six years old. He will most likely require a bone graft for the missing bone in his jaw about age 8, and lots of orthodontics will follow to address crooked and missing teeth.You can see the impact of the surgery. Imagine the challenges that Liam would have in life without such a surgery. Imagine the lives of the 1 in 700 children in the world born with cleft lip and palate and how their lives can be changed forever by this surgery.

In the last week of June here in North Carolina it's going to be hot, damned hot, unless we have a surprise weather system. I'm going to swim 250m, cycle 12 miles and run a 5km at the end. I swim like a brick, I cycle ok and I run pretty well despite tearing my calf muscle earlier this year. Either way...I will push like a madman and it'll hurt :-). I'm going to do my part and I humbly ask you to sponsor my efforts and help raise money for the Smile Train and provide for children born with this condition.


Ways to Give

Mail: Checks made payable to Smile Train can be sent directly to Rebecca Warriner, Race Director, at the address below. Please put my name, Antony Williams, in the memo.

RebeccaWarriner, Race Director
The Smile Train Triathlon
908 Heritage Greens Drive
Wake Forest, North Carolina 27587

Online at www.smiletrain.org/goto/milesintosmiles: Use Smile Train’s secure giving Web site created especially for the Smile Train Triathlon. Please list me in the Recognition Name field.

Matching gifts: Many employers match charitable giftsmade by employees, spouses, and retirees, which could easily double or triple the value of your contribution! Check with your HR department or visit www.smiletrain.org/site/PageServer?pagename=donate_matching for details.

About The Smile Train Triathlon

The Smile Train Triathlon is a USA Triathlon sprint distance race comprised of a 250-meter pool swim, 12-mile bike, and a 3.1-mile run. This race provides beginners with a safe environment to experience a triathlon while providing a fast bike course and challenging run course to the more experienced triathlete. Each year, 400 spots are filled, and 100 percent of the registration fees are sent to The Smile Train. Since 2008, The Smile Train Tri has donated more than $50,000 to The Smile Train!

About The Smile Train

The Smile Train is the world's leading cleft charity, with thousands of partners and programs in 76 of the world's poorest countries. Its mission is to help the more than 4.7 million children in developing countries who are suffering with unrepaired clefts. The Smile Train provides free cleft surgery to children from poor families that give children not just a new smile, but a new life.