Idaho Foodbank & Delta Dental Join Forces to Help Idaho Families
Backpack program helps hungry children get weekend meals
Imagine if you had to go an entire weekend without a meal. Before the Idaho Foodbank Backpack program, that scenario used to be reality for many Idaho children. School nurses and teachers around the state often encountered students complaining of stomach aches and dizziness because they did not have enough to eat. In some cases, the last meal the child ate before attending school on a Monday morning was the free school lunch the Friday before.
In addition to hunger, families often struggle to meet their basic dental hygiene needs. Delta Dental’s mobile sealant clinic team often sees students who are unable to visit a dentist and too often, don’t own a toothbrush. More recently, a young boy told the visiting dental hygienist at his school that he only brushes after breakfast, but not before bed, because his finger was too dirty to brush at night.
Stories such as these are not rare, which is why the Idaho Foodbank and Delta Dental of Idaho have teamed up to help the neediest of needy families in Idaho.
In May, over 1,800 tubes of toothpaste, 5,500 children’s toothbrushes and 4,000 adult toothbrushes, donated by Delta Dental of Idaho Community Outreach, will be distributed to students and their families through the Idaho Foodbank Backpack program.
The Backpack program helps ensure chronically hungry children receive weekend meals. Working in partnership with school officials around the state to identify needy families, the Idaho Foodbank discreetly distributes backpacks to participating students with 13 well balanced food items on Friday afternoon before the weekend. This month, those backpacks also included toothpaste, toothbrushes, and educational materials about the importance of proper dental habits for the entire family.
According to Jessica Tyler with the Idaho Foodbank, “Many of us take for granted the basic items that we use for daily care, particularly dental supplies. By utilizing the Backpack Program as an avenue for reaching those most in need, Delta Dental’s generosity put over $5,000 worth of dental care supplies in the homes of struggling families. But more importantly, the donation is a springboard for good oral care and improved overall health for the nearly 1800 Backpack Program participants and their families.”
“We admire the Idaho Foodbank’s efforts to end hunger in Idaho,” says Delta Dental Community Outreach Manager, Lisa Reed. “It is our mission to increase access to dental care. By partnering with the Foodbank, we hope to help Idaho families meet some of their most basic dental needs.”
As a non-profit organization, Delta Dental’s community outreach efforts include multiple programs that focus on education and preventive treatment for all Idahoans, with and without dental coverage. Delta Dental Community Outreach was established as part of Delta Dental of Idaho’s commitment to increase access to better dental health throughout the state. Delta Dental of Idaho has been providing dental coverage to Idaho businesses and employees since 1971.
For more information, please contact Kym Browning at (208) 489-3564.