Western Dental teams with Crest to organize Smile for Life Day celebrations in California, Arizona

Western Dental Services, Inc., the largest staff model provider of dental services in California and one of the nation's leading dental health maintenance organizations, recently teamed with oral care leader Crest to organize "Smile for Life Day" festivities at Boys & Girls Clubs in northern and southern California and Arizona to celebrate good health.

The celebrations were held as part of the national launch of CREST HEALTHY SMILES 2010, a program designed to help meet the U.S. Surgeon General's goal of eliminating disparities in oral health by 2010. Similar celebrations were organized by Crest at other Boys & Girls Clubs around the country in a major effort to call attention to the need for better oral hygiene and to help effect change in the oral health of the country.

Western Dental, which operates more than 130 dental centers throughout California and Arizona, provided free dental screenings to Club members in San Diego and Fresno, as well as Phoenix, as part of the celebrations, and provided instruction on proper brushing and flossing techniques. The company's life-sized mascot, Pearly White, also was on hand at the Encanto Boys & Girls Clubs in San Diego to greet the young children and distribute informational literature.

Club members were served healthy snacks while they created posters and artwork promoting good oral hygiene and illustrating the importance of healthy smiles. Teen members also helped some of the younger children to make their own healthy snacks, such as celery and peanut butter "logs," to show the importance of eating properly.