The 12-year-old Evan Hill from New Zealand was constantly being bullied at school because he was suffering from a severe case of buck teeth. Bullies at school gave him the nickname “rabbit kid.”
His buck teeth were so severe, in fact, that he had difficulties talking and couldn’t even close his mouth.
Thanks to the generosity of other New Zealanders, Evan finally got the smile he always dreamed of.
His story was told on the national television show Campbell Live, and the story struck a chord with many viewers. Evan’s family needed about $12,000 for the dental treatment that would remove his buck teeth, but they couldn’t afford such an operation and would have to mortgage their house for it.
Even though there is free dental care in New Zealand for children, Evan didn’t qualify because of the nature of his condition.
Luckily, the television program setup a bank account for the family by means of a fundraiser. Viewers were invited to contribute an amount so that Evan could finally get his perfect smile.
The viewers of the program raised over a hundred thousand dollars.
The wonderful generosity of the New Zealanders had given Evan and his family some hope again. Now, after five long years since Evan had gone public with his story, he finally finished all the treatments and no longer suffers from his severe buck teeth issues.
Evan had to wear braces for an extended period, which is why the orthodontist was only able to correct the buck teeth recently. He had been making monthly visits to the doctor and the final visit finally came where Evan was freed of his braces and was proud to smile.
The orthodontist, Ronald Sluiter, had to move his teeth around 15 millimeters, which is just over half an inch.
“We’ve come a long way haven’t we,” the orthodontist said. “It’s about time.”
Evan and his mother Barbara couldn’t be more happy with the immense generosity that they’ve received from their fellow New Zealanders.
“I don’t know where we would have been today without the generosity we had,” Barbara said to Newshub. “We looked at probably mortgaging our house to pay for them but this came up and blew me away.”
Evan’s procedure only cost around 12,000 dollars, but the rest of the donated money has been given to a trust for other children in urgent need of expensive dental procedures.
Evan’s mom is extremely happy to see that their story has given the opportunity to help other children in need.
Thanks to the help of strangers, Evan finally got his perfect smile. Inspiring!
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