A reason to smile

Operation Smile co-founder, president to appear on Lay's potato chip bags as part of national campaign

Published September 16, 2020 by Sydney Lake

Kathy Magee, co-founder and president of Operation Smile, will be featured on Lay’s potato chip bags as part of Frito-Lay’s Smile with Lay’s national campaign, the Virginia Beach-based nonprofit announced Wednesday.

The snack food giant’s revived campaign features 30 smiles of “ordinary people”, including Magee, who is a former nurse and social worker. She started Operation Smile with her husband, Dr. Bill Magee, nearly 40 years ago. The organization works to offer free surgeries for people born with cleft lips or palates.

Lay’s campaign for the past three years has benefited Operation Smile. With every purchase of a marked bag supports the brand’s donation of up to $1 million to the organization. 

“A smile has the power to change people’s lives all over this world,” Magee said in the campaign launch video.

This year, the 30 smiles that will appear on bags were created using CGI technology due to COVID-19 concerns related to in-person production shoots, which would have required the models to go to Dallas for a photo and video shoot. Phone selfies were sent to Lays and were professionally enhanced to appear on the chip bags.

The campaign starts this week, with Magee and all of the other “Everyday Smilers” bags in stores, and the campaign will end in December.

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