LOS ANGELES, Sept. 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Operation Smile, the international children's medical charity, will honor Ken Corday, Executive Producer of Days of our Lives; Access Hollywood anchor, Billy Bush and the Sharon D. Lund Foundation at its Smile Gala, September 19, at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, Beverly Hills. Smile Ambassador and host/actress, Brooke Burke-Charvet, will emcee and Judith Hill will perform. Kevin Beggs, Roma Downey and Mark Burnett, Jennifer and Henry Salke will co-chair.

Operation Smile provides free surgery for children worldwide suffering from facial deformities, to heal their smiles and transform their lives. Every three minutes, a child is born with a cleft lip or cleft palate. A baby born with a cleft condition has twice the odds of dying before celebrating their first birthday. The Smile Gala is a premier event, helping Operation Smile provide hope and healthy futures for children worldwide. 

Operation Smile's John Connor Humanitarian Award will be presented to Days of our Lives Executive Producer, Ken Corday. The Sharon D. Lund Foundation is the recipient of The Wallis Annenberg Public Service Award. Access Hollywood's Billy Bush will be honored with the Universal Smile Award.

Tickets begin at $500.  The 2014 Smile Gala will be produced by Scott Mauro Entertainment, Inc. For information, visit www.operationsmile.org/lagala.

For updates on Operation Smile's global efforts, visit the daily blogs on www.operationsmile.org, follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/operationsmile, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/operationsmile.

Operation Smile, headquartered in Virginia Beach, Virginia, is an international children's medical charity with a presence in more than 60 countries, whose network of more than 5,400 medical volunteers from over 80 countries is dedicated to helping improve the health and lives of children. Since its founding in 1982, Operation Smile has provided more than 220,000 free surgical procedures for children and young adults born with cleft lip, cleft palate and other facial deformities. To build long-term self-sufficiency in resource poor environments, Operation Smile trains doctors and local medical professionals in its partner countries so they are empowered to treat their local communities. Operation Smile also donates medical equipment, supplies and provides year-round medical treatment through its worldwide centers.

SOURCE Operation Smile