Philadelphia, PA
- Reeds’ Refuge Center (RRC), a community-focused, non-profit youth organization in Wilmington, Delaware, is partnering with Christiana Care Health System to provide local children free dental care. With many children at RRC lacking dental care, the Dental Department at Christiana Care felt inspired to make a difference and emphasize the importance of dental health.
This partnership with Christiana Care allows up to 60 children to receive proper dental care and guidance. Made possible through signed parental consent forms, this program will impact the lives and health of local children for years to come. RCC founder Cora Reed personally takes students each week to Wilmington Hospital to receive free dental care, including exams and x-rays, and even the scheduling of follow-up visits. Christiana Care provides RRC appointment slots every Friday to bring in the children.
“We found that the parents of our children were having trouble taking off work or they would lose their jobs. So we started offering to take children to the dentist for them. We care about your child's health just as much as we care about their education! The point is we care.” - Cora Reed
Reeds’ Refuge Center opens this dental program to not only RRC kids but to the Read to Learn and Ribbons and Bows daycare center as well as the Wilmington community. Families interested in enrolling their kids can visit Reeds’ Refuge Center to fill out the consent forms. This gives Cora and Fredrick Reed the full responsibility to schedule appointments, transport the children and become the decision maker in all dental decisions for their children while the parents are not present.
Medical students and social workers from Christiana Care also shared health and wellness information at the Reeds’ Refuge Center health expo in October 2017. Over 100 children and teens received free toothbrushes and toothpaste, information about diabetes and healthy eating, and free blood pressure screenings, while learning from anti-violence film “Choice Road.”
