Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Joins Forces with Smile for a Lifetime (S4L) Foundation to Give Smiles to Children

New Partnership Between Smile for a Lifetime and Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Gives Deserving Children An Opportunity to Receive Free Orthodontic Care

The Smile for a Lifetime (S4L) Foundation, an international nonprofit organization that provides free braces to under-served children with financial challenges and special orthodontic needs, announced today that it has partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America to find qualified applicants for their local orthodontic scholarship programs. Through S4L’s partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters, young people served by nearly 340 affiliates across the country, will have the opportunity to apply for orthodontic scholarships.

“Finances should never stop a child from achieving the dream of a straight smile and S4L is committed to touching the lives of our youth by awarding thousands of orthodontic scholarships to deserving kids,” said S4L National Board President Dr. Ronald Redmond. “Given our shared goal of fostering self-confidence among our nation’s youth, we believe our partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters is the perfect union for providing our nation’s young people with a brighter future.” Big Brothers Big Sisters’ staff, mentors, youth and families are encouraged to visit www.s4l.org to locate local chapters and obtain an application.

“The partnership with Smile for a Lifetime will provide additional opportunities to the kids who are mentored in our programs,” stated Charleston Edwards, Vice President of National Events and Sponsorships of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. “The majority of the kids we serve suffer from economic hardships in their households and often times are challenged to be able to afford practical everyday needs. This creates emotional challenges and this partnership will improve the odds of successful long term outcomes of a child by building their confidence through a simple smile. We are thrilled to work with Smile for a Lifetime to open the doors for more children to see a dentist and receive free braces.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters provides children facing adversity, often those of single or low-income households or families where a parent is incarcerated or serving in the military, with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one mentoring relationships that change their lives for the better, forever. This mission has been the cornerstone of the organization’s 110 year history. With nearly 340 agencies across the country, Big Brothers Big Sisters serves approximately 200,000 children, their families and the 200,000 volunteer mentors. Learn more at www.BigBrothersBigSisters.org.

About Smile for a Lifetime Foundation

The mission of S4L is to create self-confidence, inspire hope and change the lives of children in their communities in a dramatic way through the gift of a smile. S4L receives support from Ormco Corporation, which donates its best-in-class orthodontic appliances to the program throughout the U.S. and Canada. During treatment, many S4L local chapters also encourage scholarship recipients to participate in community service through a “pay it forward” program inspiring young people to participate in lifelong giving.

Currently, there are 165 chapters serving 43 states across North America with movement to increase those numbers to more than 200 chapters, covering 50 states and Canada in the next three years. Each chapter commits to serve at least six or more young people annually. By the end of 2014, over 3000 young people will have received the gift of a smile with over $17 million of orthodontic services donated.