“Your child needs braces.”
Words no parent (or their pocketbook) wants to hear. Though orthodontic care certainly requires some financial sacrifice, many children don’t have the financial means to receive necessary care.
Smiles Change Lives (SCL) is an affordable orthodontic option for low-income families.
For Dawson, 14, who received care through the program, he’s gained confidence at school.
“Kids would laugh at me and call me vampire because I had fang-like teeth,” he said. “It has lifted a huge burden off my parents who were very worried about my self-confidence!”
Dawson’s mother, Tammy, said she’s seen a change in him after receiving braces.
“Dawson was so happy and excited. I haven’t seen this smile in months. His self-confidence got a little boost the first time he looked in a mirror.”
Thanks to the generosity of several Kansas City orthodontists, the Smiles Change Lives program has openings left in 2014 for kids like Dawson.
“Seeing a child smile confidently for the first time in school photos and put an end to the teasing and embarrassment that can come from a crooked smile … that makes it all worthwhile,” Dr. Dustin Burleson said. (For more on Burleson Orthodontics’ work with Smiles Change Lives, click here.)
Headquartered in Kansas City, Smiles Change Lives has treated more than 6,500 children since 1997 and has emerged as the nation’s leader in providing access to orthodontic care for qualified and motivated youth.
If you know of a child (ages 10-18) that needs braces, refer them to the program’s online application at www.smileschangelives.org/apply. You can also connect with Smiles Change Lives on Facebook to find more success stories like Dawson’s.
Time is running out; don’t let these spots go unfilled.
This post is sponsored by Smiles Change Lives, a leader in providing pediatric orthodontics to low-income families both here in Kansas City and across the country.
