Smile regularly sends medical provisions (such as bandages, cotton wool and incontinence pads) and clinic/hospital equipment on our aid trucks. The standard of medical care is below what we are accustomed to in the UK, and many people cannot afford treatment.

Donations of two ambulances have provided the Smile Centre with the means to take supplies and a mobile clinic to remote mountain villages, to bring medical care to those who cannot afford either treatment or travel costs to get to town.

Gjakove has one of the highest incidences of breast and cervical cancer in the Balkans and currently there is no hospice care for those affected. Smile wishes to employ a doctor and nurses who will go to the patients' homes throughout the community, offering pain relief, medical and social support for those dying of cancer. Our sponsored Arctic Challenge enabled our Smile Kosova & Balkans Fund to help towards the initial setup costs of this project.

    
Supplies for Gjakove Hospital – Team member Nick bringing folding canes for the Blind School – Donated ambulances at the Smile Centre

Smile has brought several young people to the UK for specialist treatment unavailable in Kosova - Ryve for a prosthetic arm (having lost her left arm in the war), Berat for removal of a bullet lodged near his lung, and Selvie for correction of a life-threatening curved spine. Shkurta was provided with a prosthetic eye, as she lost an eye as a baby due to shrapnel; she has now regained confidence and is integrating well with her school friends. We thank the Lord that we were able to fund these treatments and are grateful to the doctors and staff at the various hospitals and clinics for the time and care they gave to help our young patients in their recovery.

    
Clive with Berat and the bullet that was removed – Selvie recovering in hospital – A smiling Shkurta and her mum, with her prosthetic eye

SCHOOLS

Smile has been able to provide many schools with basic equipment such as pens, paper chalk, crayons and shoeboxes full of toys, as well as supplying over 100 computers in order for them to establish IT departments. Our gift pack scheme has been a great idea in providing children with their own pens, pencils, paper and stationery in a zip folder, which is not supplied by the schools (details on Aid Guidelines page).

We are delighted that we have also been able to twin schools in Kosova with schools in the UK. The schools correspond by letter or email, and staff members from schools in the UK have been able to visit their project and see first hand the difference their help is making. If your school would like to participate in the twinning project, please contact the Smile office for details. Through these long-term links, children in both schools gain an educational awareness of their different countries, cultures and needs. By twinning schools, interest and support can be raised in the UK to support children's education in Kosova.

Special Needs Children We have links with schools for special needs and traumatised children in Kosova. Please let us know if you would like to twin with these schools or help in this particular area.

   
Kralan School: Director and Clive by the well provided by Smile - Clive bringing a "Gift With Love" football for the children – Old toilets with no running water