Children in Philadelphia will have healthier smiles thanks to grant funding totaling $100,000 from the Independence Blue Cross Foundation to Kids Smiles, a non-profit children’s dental organization. This generous funding will enable Kids Smiles to continue providing comprehensive dental care and oral health education programs to over 18,000 Philadelphia area children this year as well as support the organization’s Sweet Sixteen Capacity Building Campaign.

The Kids Smiles Sweet Sixteen Campaign was launched to dramatically increase access to care for underserved children through three major initiatives: a new dental center and capital improvements, the expansion of Kids Smiles’ oral health education and outreach programs, and the transition to an electronic health records system. The grant funding from the Independence Blue Cross Foundation will specifically focus on increasing access through the relocation of Kids Smiles’ Southwest dental center to a new, upgraded facility which will offer more convenient weekend and evening hours, better accommodate walk-in patients, and have greater visibility for residents within the community.

“Kids Smiles is extremely honored to receive this funding award from the Independence Blue Cross Foundation,” said Cheryl Janssen, CEO of Kids Smiles. “The increasing need for our services among underserved communities in Philadelphia was the catalyst for launching the Sweet Sixteen Campaign and the Independence Blue Cross Foundation’s continued commitment to our mission will help us provide more children with increased access to the essential dental care they otherwise would not receive.”

For more information about Kids Smiles’ Sweet Sixteen Campaign and how to get involved please contact Beth Young, Kids Smiles Development Director, at byoung@kidssmiles.org or 215.365.1033 x208.