Faces of Hope got our start through the work of Rotary club members. This group strived to raise the funds to support a team for an annual trip to Guatemala. Since 2005 we have endevoured to widen our scope and develop the local capacity for the treatment and care of these children.
Faces of Hope is comprised of four key elements - a Surgical and Dental team; Patient and Family care team who nurture our families through this experience; a Partnership Building team who explore options and opportunities to provide assistance to our local partners; and our Training Team who work to build the capacity of our medical partners and increase the level of practical education available to doctors trained in Guatemala.
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Surgical Team:
The core of Faces of Hope is an extraordinary medical team comprised of surgeons, anesthesiologists, pediatricians, dentists, RNs, and others who daily perform miracles. Most of the surgeries and procedures are centered around the repair of cleft lips and palates. However, these talented people also provide restorative surgeries for burns, birth defects, etc. that can be addressed safely and effectively by our team. Family Care Opened to patients and their families who receive our care, Casa de Fé is a core part of our services. It is the family housing unit for the patients and has helped crystallize our desire to provide critically needed surgeries to the patient in a holistic manner, including the family in our circle. Staffed by college students from Faces of Hope, the team prepares and serves meals, entertains our young patients and keeps them safe. They use coloring books and play games with the children making life more normal during a frightening time. We also have a public health nurse with us who spends time preparing our families for what to expect before, during and after surgery. We also use this opportunity to talk to the families about basic hygiene topics, nutrition and dental health. Education Annually we include local medical residents and young doctors in our project to expose them to working with pediatric patients and volunteerism. Our hope is to build the medical capacity locally and increase the level of practical education available to doctors trained in Guatemala. |
Humanitarian Partnership Building
Key to our mission is working with our local partners - Obras Sociales del Sta. Hermano Pedro Hospital, Casa de Fé Recovery Center, Compañeros en Salud Outreach, Clinica de Quemaduras Infantiles, and Guatemalan Rotarians to improve the effectiveness or efficiencies of their daily operations. Over the past eight years, we have crafted a close, mutually respectful relationship to make sure we understand their needs and draw upon our resources. We have helped improve their capacity to provide basic health care, extend their reach deeper into remote communities, provide immunizations for the hospital staff, and given them greater resources in their areas of operation. 
The Rotary Foundation enables its members to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education, and the alleviation of poverty.
FUNSEK is a non profit, created by a group of Guatemalan business men who share the vision of supporting Guatemala through helping children with cleft lip & palate obtain a proper nutrion for surgery. 
On the front lines of medical and surgical care in rural Guatemala, helping some of the world's most impoverished people.
Wrap-A-Smile has hand crafted stunning children’s quilts for Faces of Hope to send on our annual mission. Each child that is treated on a FoH mission takes home a beautiful quilt of his or her own. These quilts provide not just warmth, but also allow children and their families to take home a token of love Each year, Wrap-A-Smile as well as several local Northern California Quilting Groups supply us with quilts to bring to our patients. If you are interested in forming a quilting circle in your area to support the project please contact us.
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