Georgelyn was born in the Philippines with cleft lip and palate – although her cleft lip and palate was repaired when she was young by members of a Mercy Ship and she received a few other surgeries, most of Georgelyn’s life was filled with embarrassment and shame because of the extreme dental deficiencies she was left with from her cleft lip and palate. For most of her life, Georgelyn and her 4 other siblings were raised by a single mother and Georgelyn had nowhere to turn to finish the repair of her cleft lip and palate – Georgelyn’s family had a very limited income and often had nowhere to sleep and nothing to even eat, being able to complete the repair of Georgelyn’s cleft lip and palate was a luxury Georgelyn couldn’t even dream of. As Georgelyn grew up, she was extremely self-conscious of her speaking abilities and she found it hard to find a job since it was hard for her to communicate with other people.
When Georgelyn was 20 and living in the United States she was referred to Fresh Start by a nurse who noticed how much her condition was affecting her ability to speak and her confidence. Georgelyn wrote to Fresh Start, “I want to be a nurse or a teacher because I want to help people. But I realize that my disability is holding me back to pursue my dreams.” Georgelyn has now been a Fresh Start patient for about four years and has received braces, a root canal, and speech therapy. In the future, Georgelyn will receive additional surgeries and dental care to ensure that she leaves the Fresh Start program with the best possible result – a beautiful smile and the ability to speak with confidence.
Georgelyn will be receiving dental care at Fresh Start’s Restorative Dental Clinic on December 2, 2011 at Dr. Fallah’s Carlsbad Dental Office. All of Georgelyn’s dental procedures will be provided by volunteer dentists and dental assistants who will also be treating about 9 other patients who have nowhere else to turn to receive dental care. If you would like to support Georgelyn and other Fresh Start patients, please visit the Fresh Start Website to make a difference today.
