Smile by name, smile by nature.

All the charities I recently gave a donation to thanked me quickly – which was nice to see. But the one that stood out (and made me smile) was from The Smile Train.

Things little and large that made the difference:

- They thanked me very, very much (sounds silly, but it felt nice, hearing it twice).

- They told me something new. I didn’t know they have a record of never turning a child away and I felt a bit chuffed to be helping them achieve that.

- They’re going to send me a picture of a child I helped (yes, I know, it’s not literally the child I helped, but I don’t care. I’m quite good at suspending disbelief).

- Better still, I know exactly when it’s due to arrive (2 months) and it’ll have PICTURES ENCLOSED on the envelope so I know to look out for it. Genius. I’ve already made a mental note about when this might come and I can’t wait.

- My letter was from Brian, Co-founder. The other thank yous I got from the two other charities I donated to came from a rather disappointing ‘Fundraising Assistant’ and ‘Marketing Manager’. No thanks.

Oh, I also got a DVD of their Oscar-winning documentary, but it’s still waiting to be watched. I’ve been too busy telling people about what a great guy Brian from Smile Train is.

Sinead