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2024 marked the 10th anniversary since our first Smile Drive campaign. We celebrated from January through April with fun games and contests, including an All-Star Challenge. All volunteers were invited to see if they could collect more oral care products than one of our exceptional past volunteers for a chance to win $250.
164 volunteers registered SmileDrives in 36 states this year in addition to 150 Scouts who collected nearly 2,000 items in order to earn their “Saving Smiles Dental Hygiene Award” patches.
Some Smile Drive volunteers held their collections in reaction to a crisis. Vivienne Hill, an elementary student from Corpus Christi, TX was concerned about her friend, Moena, when she heard about the wildfires in Maui. She wanted to do something to help her friend’s community even though they were 3,700 miles away. (See how Vivienne helped here.)
Other volunteers held their drives during National Children’s Dental Health Month in February to build awareness about children who suffer with poor oral health because they lack dental hygiene supplies at home. Sarah Vogel of Eureka, CA and her colleagues at the Humbolt County Dental Advisory Group (HCDAG) collected more than 3,000 items by soliciting dental offices for donations, working with a local grocery story so that customers could donate hygiene kits, and sharing information about their Smile Drive with local charitable organizations and churches.
“This was a joint effort of HCDAG, which includes our Public Health Department, dental providers, and several nonprofits,” Sarah told us. “Our group wanted to do something to bring awareness to the issues of poor oral health during Children's Dental Health Month. We are very impressed with the response from our community.”
HCDAG distributed their collected supplies to 16 family and community resource centers throughout rural Humboldt County, CA. In addition, their online drive received enough in donations to send 1,800 toothbrushes to Redwood Community Action Agency (RDAA), an organization that works to enable low-income or disadvantaged individuals to gain the necessary skills, education, and motivation they need to become self-sufficient.
Sarah and her team were named our new Smile Drive All-Stars by collecting more than our 2024 All-Star, Sophia Causie, who collected over 1,800 oral care items for elementary schools throughout her hometown of Jackson, MI. HCDAG generously donated their $250 All-Star prize to the RCAA’s TOOTH Program, which promotes good oral health among Humbolt County children by encouraging healthy oral health habits.
In addition, SmileMakers, Crest and Oral-B donated toothbrushes and toothpaste directly to America’s ToothFairy. The supplies were distributed to community resource organizations including schools, churches, food banks, public libraries, safety-net dental care providers, daycares, and homeless shelters in 33 states and Washington, DC.
In all, 150,319 dental hygiene products were donated to help children in need during our 10th Anniversary Smile Drive.
Looking for a way to help struggling families in your community? See how easy it is to make a difference on our Smile Drive page. This year’s Smile Drive ends June 30, 2025.
