Kiwanis to Sponsor 'Barbeque for Babies' to Help Children with Cleft Palates

A "Barbeque for Babies" fundraiser will be held at on May 30 to help raise money to provide surgery and purchase special baby bottles for children with cleft palates living in Guatemala.

Sponsored by Monrovia's chapter of Kiwanis International and spearheaded by Monrovia Unified School District Superintendent Linda Wagner, the event will use 100 percent of the proceeds to purchase the special bottles, Wagner said in an email.

The same event was held last year and raised enough money to buy 100 bottles and pay for surgery to repair the cleft lips of six children. Wagner got involved in raising mney for the cause after spending time at a language school in Guatemala, she said.

"There, cleft lips and palates are often not fixed due to the cost of these specialized surgeries," she wrote. "As a result, children and adults grow up disfigured and malnourished."

The barbeque will last from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.