Like most of Operation International’s medical mission volunteers, Team Operation Restore Vision (ORV) leader Seth Meskin, MD, FAAO, would often share his experiences bringing free surgical care to underserved communities across the globe with his family when he returned home. His daughters even remember him giving a presentation about his adventures after each trip–both about his patients and visits to Operation International’s orphanage in Uganda.

It wasn’t long before the girls, who were too young to join their dad on missions at the time, were inspired to do their part.  

“He showed us videos of hundreds of orphans not much different in age from myself, living in such difficult situations,” said Dr. Meskin’s younger daughter, Sophie Meskin. “We wanted to find a way to help out immediately.”

Sophie, her older sister Maytal Meskin, and their grandmother soon came up with the idea for the “Teddy Bears for Uganda Project,” an annual tradition of making handmade teddy bears that their dad could bring on his trips and hand out to children at OI’s Rakai Infant and Primary School Orphanage. 

“Every child has a teddy bear at some point in their life, and so should these children,” Sophie said.

The project–starting at Operation Restore Vision’s second trip to Uganda in 2022–has so far donated 200 bears, most recently on their 2025 mission trip. Each time, the positivity and joy has been palpable, both for the children and the Meskins.

"Seeing the photos of the kids with their new gifts brought such a big smile to my face,” said Maytal Meskin. “It’s amazing how something small, like a teddy bear, can make such a difference for these children. It’s a reminder that even little things can bring a lot of happiness."

Teddy Bears for Uganda is just one of the unique ways Operation International, as a global health nonprofit, extends its humanitarian aid beyond surgical and medical care. Like Operation Restore Vision, each Operation International team’s free medical missions in developing countries are dedicated to training local healthcare professionals, improving hospital infrastructure, and, when applicable, supporting orphans or the wider community in the nations they visit.

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Through the generous contributions of its donors, Operation International supports more than 2,100 orphans across the world, including four orphanages and schools in Uganda alone. The orphanage projects are part of the humanitarian organization’s commitment to combating the cycle of poverty that further besets the lives of children in the communities it serves.

“As a team leader, I love that Operation International's impact extends far beyond the doors of the operating room and clinic,” Dr. Seth Meskin said. “Programs like ‘Teddy Bears for Uganda’ help us to create strong and lasting connections to the people and communities we have the honor of serving. As a father, it has been wonderful to see how motivated Maytal and Sophie have been to get involved and do their parts even as young kids helping out.”

Since the Teddy Bears for Uganda program began, both Maytal and Sophie have gotten the chance to join their dad on a mission trip. Most recently, Sophie volunteered during the team’s 2025 trip to Uganda, getting the opportunity to not only personally hand out the teddy bears for the first time, but to bring another important donation to the orphanage and school. 

Now a high schooler, Sophie has spent the last year and a half developing a new charitable program, SafelySun, which raises awareness for sun safety and skin cancer prevention particularly for young people. As part of this project–and in line with Operation Restore Vision’s goals of ophthalmic health–Sophie distributed 100 pairs of sunglasses to children in Uganda this year in the hopes of promoting good sun habits from a young age.

“Although Uganda – an equatorial country – has extremely strong UV radiation, most people there do not know the importance of protecting their eyes from the sun’s damaging UV rays,” Sophie said. Dr. Meskin noted that the ultraviolet light causes problems like cataract formation and abnormal tissue growth (pterygia).

“It was so special to see the children eagerly running up to me asking for ‘goggles,'" Sophie said. "Even though I am not a medical professional, I am so happy to be able to help and I will remember this experience forever."

In addition to their community building and donations, Operation Restore Vision performed nearly 200 life-changing surgery cases in just five days during their third trip to Uganda.