America’s ToothFairy collected more than 300,000 toothbrushes, tubes of toothpaste, and other oral care products and distributed them to underserved children during the nonprofit organization’s fourth annual Smile Drive. Products were collected through an array of community collection sites and large donations from SmileMakers, Patterson Dental, Procter & Gamble, and Dr. Fresh.
Participating in the Smile Drive for its second year, Glen Creek Dental of Salem, Ore, collected 21,500 products and donated them the United Way of the Mid-Willamette Valley for distribution to the families it serves. By gathering donations from local businesses, via a gift basket raffle, and by reaching out to local dental company representatives, Glen Creek Dental took the award for the largest collection by a dental practice.
“Our patients were really proud to be associated with a dental practice that was giving back to their community in such as significant way,” said Nancy Focht, an employee at Glen Creek Dental. “Our goal was to distribute 2,000 oral care kits. However, we were able to distribute more than 5,500 kits. We are now the primary contributor of oral hygiene products to our local United Way.”
The O’Gorman-Greater Sioux Falls Health Occupations Students of America: Future Health Professionals Chapter won its third straight award for Most Products Collected with 33,083 products. Kristina Hyatt, RDH, won the award for Best Social Media Presence. And, Culture and Heritage Museums of York County in South Carolina won the award for Best Smile Drive Photo.
America’s ToothFairy also led a Smile Drive in its hometown of Charlotte, NC, delivering more than 80,000 oral care products to Title I schools and to an array of local organizations serving children in foster care, homeless shelters, and after-school programs. Since its first Smile Drive in 2014, America’s ToothFairy has distributed more than 1.2 million oral care products to children in need across the country.
“No child should go without the simple tools they need to establish positive oral health habits and prevent the pain and embarrassment of tooth decay,” said Jill Malmgren, executive director of America’s ToothFairy. “We are proud to see our Smile Drive participants getting involved in meeting the needs of their community and ensuring children have access to basic dental hygiene products.”
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