Planned Giving

Meg Hughes and Smile Train Were Made for Each Other

Meg Hughes, a longtime Smile Train supporter, wrote the following in 2017. Though she sadly passed away recently, she is still bringing life, health, and smiles to children every day thanks to the Legacy of Smiles gift she generously left in her estate.

I was nine in 1956 when my dentist found a strange mass on my lower jaw. Within days, I was in a hospital for two long, terrifying nights. My parents feared cancer. It was benign, but the mass covered my entire jaw and couldn’t be removed.

Ten surgeries followed over the next 30 years. My lump and missing teeth made me painfully self-conscious until, much later, dentistry gave me a prosthetic.

Decades later, my husband was in assisted living. One holiday season, I asked his aide about her family’s plans. She told me they were skipping gifts to raise enough for one child’s cleft surgery through Smile Train. Moved, I researched Smile Train and became a donor.

Helping children smile was addictive. I began giving monthly, then included Smile Train in my will. In 2017 I joined a Journey of Smiles, traveling to Cap-Haïtien, Haiti. I met a boy before and after his cleft surgery, held his mother’s hands as she cried with gratitude, and saw the skill of the local medical team.

I know the fear of facing life with a visible difference — and the joy of seeing a life transformed. Smile Train changes futures every single day.

Please give what you can. The gift of a smile is more powerful than you can imagine.

To learn about including Smile Train in your estate plan, visit our Smiles for Life Society page or contact us at 212.689.9199 or plannedgiving@smiletrain.org.

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