2017 Give Kids A Smile ‘Smile Champion’ Awardees Announced
CHICAGO, Oct. 4, 2017 – The ADA Foundation (ADAF) has announced the winners of the 2017 Smile Champion awards for Give Kids A Smile (GKAS), which recognize outstanding volunteer and corporate efforts to strengthen and expand the GKAS program.
Scott Morita, DDS, of Hawaii, an orthodontist and the president of the Hawaii Dental Association’s Young Dentist group, has been named the recipient of the Jeffrey Dalin, D.D.S. Give Kids A Smile Volunteer Award. Julie Charlestein, president and CEO of Premier Dental Products Company, has been named the recipient of the Steven W. Kess Give Kids A Smile Corporate Volunteer Award.
The awards presentation will take place during the ADA Foundation GKAS Volunteer Recognition Reception, Thursday, Oct. 19 at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis during ADA 2017.
Scott Morita, DDS
Jeffrey Dalin, D.D.S. Give Kids A Smile Volunteer Award
Morita organized the first Give Kids A Smile Hawaii event in 2014. The program has since grown into a yearly education program at public elementary schools reaching more than 3,000 children and has expanded to include the islands of Maui, Kauai and the Big Island, including a large GKAS event at Makahiki Dental Clinic in Honolulu where 350 children receive free cleanings, exams and fluoride treatments. Morita was also instrumental in the establishment of the Hawaii Dental Association Foundation, a 501(c)3 foundation that will encompass GKAS Hawaii.
“We have worked on raising public awareness by arranging for proclamations to be signed by the governor of Hawaii and the mayor of Honolulu, and also the state senate, recognizing February as Give Kids A Smile Hawaii Month,” said Morita. “Give Kids A Smile allows us to do good for our community. I believe it is our duty to utilize our skills as dentists to positively impact the lives of the children in our community. I believe we are all ‘Smile Makers.’”
Julie Charlestein
President and CEO, Premier Dental Products Company
Steven W. Kess Give Kids A Smile Corporate Volunteer Award
Julie Charlestein is a fourth-generation leader at Premier Dental Products Company, which was started in 1913 by her great grandfather, Julius Charlestein. Premier develops, manufactures and distributes innovative consumables to the dental professional worldwide.
Charlestein was voted as one of The Top 25 Most Influential Women in Dentistry by Dental Products Report (2012) and is a member of The Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO). She serves on the Board of Overseers for The University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine; the Dean’s Advisory Council of Temple University Dental School; and on the Boards of Directors of the Alliance for Oral Health Across Borders, the Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health, and the ALS (Lou Gherig’s Disease) Association. She is an honorary member of Alpha Omega Dental Fraternity and sat on the Board of Directors of the Dental Trade Alliance, where she chaired the Government Relations Committee.
“GKAS is a program of the utmost importance whose mission Premier fully supports,” said Charlestein. “We are so fortunate to be able to develop meaningful innovations that deliver better oral health to the children that GKAS touches. Engrained in Premier’s culture is the importance of community involvement and the recognition that all are deserving.”
Award recipients receive an engraved crystal award, recognition in ADA News and other recognition as available. To learn more about this and other ADA Foundation programs, or to make a donation, visit www.adafoundation.org.
