A new year – the 9th year of Little Smile Sri Lanka – is starting. Despite civil war, Tsunami, jealousy and mistrust, many children and women with children in need, like Anita, are able to smile again because of Little Smile. This Tamil girl is able to look forward to the future because there are people helping her and all her Little Smile sisters and brothers, people on the island in the south of India and people form far-away Germany.
Phase 31: January to March 2007  Also this year Manuel Kreitmeir, the 20-year-old son of our founder, is celebrating Christmas and New Year’s Eve with his Little Smile brothers and sisters. It was “love at first sight” on both sides with the 6-year-old Sarah.
 Sri Lanka between hope and fear. This girl looks left behind and lost in this huge cemetery on the east coast. More than 300 Tsunami victims were hastily buried here. Even 2 years after the catastrophe the scars are not yet healed and already a new civil war is opening up new wounds.
 Our old gardener died and as promised by Michael Kreitmeir years ago, this old and poor Tamil who had become a skeleton at the end, is given a worthy funeral.
 In February Little Smile has many visitors. Dr. Ute and Dr. Bernd Stahlhacke from the organization „Pharmacists without borders“ are impressed to see the hospital building in Kalmunai growing step by step despite civil war.
 Dr. Dieter Berstecher from UNESCO children's assistance is checking the use of donations on site. The “help professional” is impressed by the progress made at Little Smile under the hardest conditions.
 Maybe trend-setting, but also very important was Michael Pickel's visit to Little Smile. On behalf of the company AVO, the chemist assessed the pepper, cinnamon, cloves and vanilla plantations in Little Smile. His conclusion: the soil is completely free of any chemicals and everything that grows here can be certified as organic food.
 Karl Eyerkaufer, a former district administrator and very active in Tsunami help in Sri Lanka, is looking over Pilane for the Heraeus donation. Here a children home will be soon built.
 A happy stop on a long journey: Peter Hirschmann and Mirko Kappelhoff from the Wacker aide fund at the opening ceremony in front of the main house in the project Pilane at Galle. This Little Smile project will care mainly for the training of young people and will be additionally supported by the Saarbrücker newspaper and Heraeus donations.
 Unbelievable what can be done within one week! The Rotarians from Oberstorf Dr. Rössel and Mr. Müller visited many Little Smile projects on the island to report to their Rotarian friends back home. On the photo you see (from left) Dr. Rössel, Michael Kreitmeir, Mr. Müller and Mr. Ramesh, the coordinator of Little Smile at the east coast, on the roof of the medical store building in Kalmunai.
 After completion of a water reservoir, streets and fences inButtala, laying of the first stone of the children hospital and the training centre for nurses and midwifes will take place in February.
 A late Christmas surprise for the children is delivered when 9 boxes of clothes
arrive from the Espirit Company. Milani is not the only one astonished. The company cared also for transportation and custom, which was a huge and surprising Christmas present at end of February. Thank you!  And another Christmas present that arrived in time for Easter in the children home and made the children happy. The box of Lenka Rühle from Füssen was lost for a long time. But now, great happiness.
 Brigitte Lichtner is saying „Good bye“ with ice cream after 3 weeks of hard work. The interior designer from Düsseldorf helped clear up different questions in the construction field, drew up plans and designed the interior of the school building.
 Being there for children day and night. The matrons of the children home Little Smile. A few days after this group photo was taken, Julia, Patrizia and Anka (from left), our three volunteers from Germany went back home after 4 and 6 months.
 Michael Kreitmeir is discussing with the education minister of Sri Lanka training concepts of Little Smile. The minister, who is responsible for more than 8000 schools, would like the German for his f teacher’s training project
 Nearly all others were older, higher and bigger, but the Little Smile boys Damith and Jagath have won the marathon of Koslanda. The hard training and the will to win were paid off. At the end Michael Kreitmeir is waiting to hug both tired winners proudly.
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