We are celebrating two important milestones in 2021!
First, December marks 15 years of our mission to help save smiles.
Even better, this year our program members provided dental services and oral health education to a record-breaking number of children and caregivers!
We are excited to share these milestones and other highlights from 2021 with you!
Since 2006, together we've helped more than 8.8 million children and caregivers learn how to keep their smiles healthy.
learning to prevent tooth decay
On average, our nonprofit partners use our ToothFairy 101® Community Education Kit and other educational materials to provide oral health instruction to more than 362,000 kids each year.
In addition to that, this year sponsors including DentaQuest helped us engage kids across the nation in fun activities that teach them about the importance of healthy dental hygiene habits. Read more about these educational initiatives in our Financial Report.
Ryan Lerman was the first person to correctly answer the following ToothFairy Trivia question:
What does the acronym HERO stand for?
ANSWER: Health Education Resources + Outreach
With support from our HERO Program Title Sponsor Align Technology, we provide fun educational materials and tools to help health professionals and volunteers who are passionate about children's oral health teach kids and their parents how to keep their smiles healthy.
Thanks to our donors, since 2006 more than 8.8 MILLION children and caregivers have learned about the importance of healthy dental hygiene habits.
In just 8 years, more than 2.2 million dental hygiene supplies have been distributed to families in need!
every child should have a toothbrush!
It's alarming every time we hear a child say they don't have a toothbrush at home. That's why we are especially thankful for our Smile Drive volunteers who collect dental hygiene supplies to help kids in their communities.
Our generous corporate donors including Crest, Oral-B, SmileMakers, and Zimba, also donated toothbrushes and toothpaste that were given to nonprofit organizations serving families in need across the country.
Congratulations to Shivani Kumar for correctly answering the following ToothFairy Trivia question:
How many volunteers joined in last year to collect oral care items and distribute them to families in need?
ANSWER: In FY21 857 volunteers participated in our Smile Drive campaign to help children in their communities have the dental hygiene supplies needed to prevent tooth decay and gum disease!
Now more than ever, kids need to practice good dental hygiene to prevent the spread of germs and protect their smiles from dental disease. Learn more about how you can get involved at SmileDrive.org.
Since 2006, our program members have screened 1,753,636 kids for tooth decay and other oral health needs.
Reaching Kids Where they live, learn & play
For families living in impoverished and rural communities, transportation can be a challenging barrier to care. Screening programs at schools are an effective strategy to make access to dental care easier for these families.
Read more about this in our feature in Dentistry Today.
With the ongoing pandemic, our program members are finding creative ways to access students when restrictions make it difficult to enter schools. With support from Septodont, they received resources to screen 17% more kids this year and identify those in need of dental services in places like schools and afterschool programs.
Aditi Gadhvi was the first to answer our next ToothFairy Trivia question:
What percentage of our program members provide school-based dental services?
ANSWER: 82% of our Dental Resource Program members access students at school to overcome transportation barriers to care, screen children for emergent dental care needs, and provide preventive services.
Our generous corporate partners have donated more than $16.6 million in dental supplies and equipment for our program members since 2006!
protecting little smiles
In addition to learning about the importance of dental hygiene habits, we work with our donors and partners to ensure kids in vulnerable communities can get the preventive services they need to avoid the pain, embarrassment, and expense of tooth decay.
As Title Sponsor of our National Fluoride Varnish Initiative, 3M Oral Care generously donates products to help protect the smiles of kids in need across the country.
Congratulations to Catherine Lucero! She had the closest guess (without going over) for our next ToothFairy Trivia question:
How many children received fluoride varnish applications through our program members during FY2021?
ANSWER: 144,250 kids received this effective treatment from our program members to prevent tooth decay!
Since 2006 our generous donors have helped us provide more than $23 million in resources to our program members!
increasing access to dental care
The safety-net dental clinics and community organizations that participate in our Dental Resource Program receive donated products, program grants, and educational materials to help more kids have healthy smiles. 2021 was a record-breaking year!
Our program members also qualify to receive In the Gap grants to provide direct care for kids in need of urgent dental services that are not covered by insurance and cost more than their families can afford to pay. Since 2018, nearly $80,000 has been awarded to help restore the smiles of kids and teens across the country. Read more about our 2021 In the Gap Grants in our Financial Report.
As Title Sponsor of our Dental Resource Program, TSC EcoSolutions and our other proud sponsors helped our members serve more children and their caregivers than ever before this year!
How many kids and caregivers received dental care and/or oral health education through our Dental Resource Program members this year?
Congratulations to Effie Catron for guessing the closest without going over to win our final ToothFairy Trivia question!
ANSWER: In FY2021 our program members provided dental services and education to 944,927 kids and caregivers!
Thank you to everyone who gave to help us break records this year!
WHAT'S IN STORE FOR 2022?
As more families struggle to recover from the financial hardships caused by the pandemic shutdowns, our program members are seeing an increase in the demand for their services.
Your gift will help deliver valuable resources to help more kids in disadvantaged communities have healthy smiles and a healthier future. Visit our website to make your end-of-year contribution today!
Thank you for giving to help save smiles!
Click here to see our full FY21 financial statement, sponsors, and donors.