Soroptimist Smile of Hope dental program taking applicants
Members of Soroptimist International of Whitefish are once again offering assistance to women who need dental health care through its Smile of Hope Dental Program.
Dental health care is a very important preventative measure for overall good health and for many women such care is just too costly.
Smile of Hope, a one-of-a-kind annual program, offers 10 grants, up to $2,000 each, to help eligible women acquire needed dental health care.
The eligibility requirements are specific and applicants must meet the following:
- Be the financial head-of-household, disabled or unable to work
- Demonstrate financial need
- If employed, verify employment
- Demonstrate the need for dental care
- Be a nonsmoker
- Demonstrate the desire to improve, such as by going to school, looking for better employment opportunities, or merely hoping to gain confidence.
The Whitefish Soroptimist Smile of Hope dental program began around 12 years ago. Former Flathead Valley nurse and Whitefish Soroptimist Joanie Sorensen founded the program after she volunteered at a free dental clinic and saw the great need for affordable dental care.
“Clients would come in with severely infected teeth,” Sorensen recalled. “All we could do at that time was extractions and send them on their way with antibiotics.
“Our goal is to improve women’s lives and livelihood by providing this opportunity to improve their dental health and self-esteem,” Sorensen continued.
Since its inception, many area dentists have helped Whitefish Soroptimists provide successful applicants with necessary care, such as cleanings, X-rays, restorations, extractions, etc., within the monetary limits of each grant.
Area dentists assisting with the 2019-2020 program include: Dalen Dental Clinic, Buffington Dental, Restorations Denture Studio, Glacier Dental Group, Shepherd’s Hand Dental Clinic, Flathead City-County Health Dental Clinic, Stebbins Dental, Dental Distinctions, Leslie Anthony, DMD, Michael Bowman, DDS, Potthoff Dentistry and Summit Dental Group.
“This year the Smile of Hope dental program is formally partnering with the dental clinic at Shepherd’s Hand Clinic,.” noted LuAnn Basirico, Smile of Hope committee chair. “By having extractions done at Shepherd’s Hand, our grant dollars can go further in the women’s dental treatment and care.”
To date, 86 area women have benefited from the Whitefish Soroptimist partnerships with area dentists. Following a grantee’s final dental visit, each patient receives a Sonicare electric toothbrush kit, dental care education and a 6-month follow-up examination.
Paula Duncan, an earlier awardee of Smile of Hope, expressed her appreciation, saying, “I just wanted to say thank-you to you and the Smile of Hope Program for my beautiful new teeth! I am so honored to have been chosen for this program. There are not enough words to express my gratitude! You have changed my life.”
Interested individuals can download applications from the Soroptimist International of Whitefish website, at www.soroptimistwhitefish.org. Applications can also be picked up at the Soroptimist Thrift Haus, 303 First St., Whitefish. Applications will be accepted through June 30, 2020.
Along with the application, individuals are also asked to submit a 200-word personal statement, verification of employment or personal situation, financial statement and two references.
Soroptimist International is a global organization whose goal is to improve the lives of women and girls the world over, through many different nonprofit programs. The Smile of Hope program is unique to the Whitefish chapter, which funds all of its nonprofit programs through the public’s support of its Thrift Haus.