MetLife Foundation is awarding $1.1 million to two organizations focused on children and children's health to promote the importance of oral healthcare and teaching children and their families proper tooth-brushing techniques.
MetLife Foundation will provide $500,000 to Children's Health Fund (CHF) to support CHF's national oral health initiative, Healthy Kids, Healthy Smiles, the organizations announced.
With the funding, CHF programs will provide oral healthcare to low-income and homeless children and families primarily via mobile dental clinics in New York City, Los Angeles, Dallas, and Washington, DC. The donation will increase CHF's mobile dental clinic services in these cities by 65% over the previous year.
MetLife Foundation will provide an additional $600,000 to Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind Sesame Street, to develop Healthy Teeth, Healthy Me, a bilingual (English/Spanish) multimedia outreach initiative that leverages the power of the beloved Sesame Street characters to motivate children ages 2 to 5, their parents, and caregivers to care for children's oral health.
The outreach kit, which will launch early next year, will include an original Sesame Street DVD, a guide for families, public service messages, community health providers guide, and online games and resources.
The grant will also support the development, production, and dissemination of booklets aimed at parents, caregivers, and adults to help them support and maintain their children's oral health.
