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Blessed with a healthy body and striking features, Huong Giang fights for children with facial deformities.
Not everyone is fortunate enough to be born with a healthy body and striking features. More than most, Huong Giang knows she has been blessed in both respects. What sets her apart, however, is her deep awareness of the misfortunes of others—an empathy that led her to become involved with Operation Smile, the organisation dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children with congenital facial deformities.
Huong Giang has always had a deep affection for children and a strong maternal instinct. In 2009, she had a defining moment when she stepped into an Operation Smile Vietnam (OS) operating theatre—only to faint almost immediately. The experience was an awakening. It made her realise that what seems ordinary to some can be an unimaginable challenge for others. In the operating room, she witnessed the depth of parental love for children with facial deformities—moments of heartbreak when a child did not meet the health requirements for surgery, anticipation as they were taken into theatre, and overwhelming relief when they returned, transformed. It was then that she resolved to remain with OS, not just as a promotional ambassador, but as an active force within the organisation. She immersed herself in surgical programmes and partnership development, deepening her involvement. In 2017, when she returned to Vietnam to live, she took on an even greater role—overseeing OS’s development strategy as Development Director, a position she has held ever since.
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For Huong Giang, her connection with OS feels like fate—it was the very year she was born, 1989, that the organisation first arrived in Vietnam. At that time, diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the United States had yet to be restored, and OS’s first medical team in the country was made up of American veterans. Every doctor and nurse involved in those early missions was a foreigner. Now, 35 years on, she takes great pride in the fact that OS in Vietnam is run entirely by Vietnamese doctors and volunteers. “Some of our doctors first joined OS as medical students. Even after retiring, they continue working with us without financial compensation—despite having faced personal hardships themselves while travelling for surgeries across the country. That dedication is part of what makes me want to stay with OS even longer,” she shares.
Throughout her 15 years of involvement, Huong Giang has witnessed countless heartrending stories, but one in particular has stayed with her. In 2017, she and her husband participated in the Vietnam Mountain Marathon to promote OS’s mission. While exploring the night market, she came across a young boy from an ethnic minority, selling goods on the street while huddled close to his mother. He had a cleft lip and was unable to speak Kinh. Both mother and son were timid and sceptical, unable to believe that free medical treatment could be available to them. After extensive persuasion, the race organisers helped arrange for the child and his family to travel to Hanoi, where he underwent a successful operation. “I realised that not everyone has easy access to the hotline or even knows about OS, especially those in remote areas with limited communication resources. That’s why OS continues to run surgical programmes in the most isolated regions, ensuring that more children have the chance to regain their smiles.”
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When asked what she has gained from her involvement with Operation Smile, Huong Giang does not hesitate—her answer is a belief in goodness. She has seen doctors and nurses willingly sacrifice their time, energy, and expertise to help those in need. She has also encountered companies that, instead of opting for high-profile charity initiatives, have quietly supported OS for over a decade, with no desire for publicity—driven only by the simple wish to make a difference.
“For me, OS is like a family, an ‘anchor’ in life—somewhere I can return to whenever I feel stressed or exhausted. People may come and go, but they always find their way back, often in different roles. I believe this sense of belonging is not just meaningful to me, but to all OS volunteers. To believe in kindness is a privilege, and to this day, I feel fortunate to work with OS and witness that privilege in action,” she reflects.
Smiles change lives
Globally, a child is born with a cleft lip or palate every three minutes. One in ten will not survive to their first birthday. In Vietnam, an estimated 3,000 babies are born with cleft conditions each year. A single surgery to repair a cleft lip costs around VND10 million, covering medicine, hospital fees, travel, and food—an insurmountable sum for impoverished families in remote areas, where these conditions are most prevalent.
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Operation Smile provides life-changing surgeries for children born with cleft lips and palates, offering them a second chance at a full and healthy life. Over the past 35 years, OS has examined and treated more than 78,000 patients across Vietnam, delivering not just new smiles, but renewed hope—particularly in rural communities where access to quality healthcare remains scarce.
As OS’s Director of Development, Huong Giang oversees fundraising and strategic partnerships, connecting organisations and initiatives with medical volunteers who carry out humanitarian surgeries. Some campaigns hold deep emotional significance, such as Momo Piggy Bank, which allows those with little to spare to donate as little as VND1,000 or 2,000—small acts of generosity that collectively make a powerful impact. “I often tell our volunteers and partners, ‘The children and their families may never know your names, but they will never forget the kindness you have shown them,’” she says.
Operation Smile and ‘Zero-Cost Marketing Campaigns’
Despite operating in Vietnam for many years without heavy reliance on media exposure, Operation Smile has successfully launched initiatives that have raised widespread awareness of its work. One standout example is the Sports Change Lives programme, which won the prestigious Best Public Relations and Communications Campaign at the VNPR Awards 2023. Like many community-driven sports initiatives, it began as a simple fundraising effort, where participants—runners, cyclists, and swimmers—raised donations individually or through race organisers. Over time, however, it evolved into a thriving movement within the sports community, attracting athletes from amateur to professional levels. To date, this initiative alone has funded surgeries for more than 1,000 children—an achievement that, in the early days, felt almost unimaginable to the OS team.
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“One particularly inspiring case is athlete Thanh Vu. I was astonished and deeply moved when I learned that she recently completed a staggering endurance challenge—a 114km swim, a 5,400km bike ride, and a 1,266km run over 44 days, looping the course 30 times the distance of an Ironman event—all to raise funds for OS. She shared that her motivation was the dream of bringing 30 smiles to 30 children in need, covering the cost of their life-changing surgeries,” Huong Giang said.
For Huong Giang, charitable work is anything but simple—it cannot be done on a whim or in isolation. True philanthropy demands transparency, dedication, and significant time and effort from those involved. This is precisely why, instead of pursuing individual initiatives, she has remained committed to OS, a professionally run organisation with the structure to make a lasting impact. “It is difficult enough for one person to sustain charitable work long-term; rallying others to join and take shared responsibility is even more challenging,” she explains.
To believe in goodness is a privilege, and to this day, I feel lucky to have worked with OS and witnessed that privilege.
“Charity work is simply an expression of care—it manifests in different ways. Some people are passionate about infrastructure projects, others about education, healthcare, or supporting the elderly. For me, my love for children is what has anchored me to Operation Smile’s surgical programme, helping to transform their futures. Looking ahead, I hope to dedicate myself to an educational initiative as well, as these are the two fields I am most passionate about,” she affirms.
Article published from the original print edition of Tatler Vietnam, November 2024
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Photography: OS, NVCC
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