CHICAGO--The American Dental Association's newly established Give Kids A Smile Fund received good news of its own to smile about when CareCredit became the fund's founding donor with a gift of $100,000.
Designed to focus national attention on the untreated oral disease among disadvantaged children, Give Kids A Smile is an annual one-day event that provides free educational and preventive and restorative services to children from low-income families.
"This year, CareCredit will commemorate its 20th anniversary. Over the past two decades, it has been CareCredit's goal to make dentistry more accessible to everyone," stated Michael J. Testa, president, CareCredit. "We are honored to support the ADA and dentists' efforts to bring necessary dental care to children through its Give Kids A Smile program."
Give Kids A Smile's fifth annual event was held this year Feb. 2 at more than 2,150 locations across the United States, ranging from dental offices to dental schools. More than 51,000 dental professionals volunteered their time, providing free dental care to more than 750,000 children.
"CareCredit's $100,000 gift will help us expand our Give Kids A Smile program beyond the February one-day event," explained Steven Kess, vice president of professional relations for Henry Schein, Inc., and chair of the newly established Give Kids A Smile National Advisory Board.
"We have reached a point where we need to take the program to the next level that requires putting in place the resources to support a year-round effort and CareCredit's generosity provides us with an excellent start."
"By expanding Give Kids A Smile, we look forward to highlighting those charitable efforts on a more frequent basis throughout the nation," says Dr. Kathleen Roth, ADA president. We challenge legislators to accept their responsibility in opening doors for children in need through appropriately funding the necessary programs to improve oral health for these populations."
