Morris County Organizations Receive $255,000 from DDNJ

PARSIPPANY, NJ – The Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Delta Dental of New Jersey (DDNJ), has announced that three organizations in Morris County will receive $255,000 in grant funding to provide dental care and education to uninsured and underinsured populations.

The Foundation for Morristown Medical Center will use its $120,000 in grant funding to provide 750 children, seniors, and developmentally disabled individuals with dental care and help cover the costs of dental supplies and lab fees.

Zufall Health received $125,000 in grant funding, including $65,000, which will go toward its annual two-day Smiles for Our Heroes event for underserved veterans. The remaining amount will be used to expand its dental assistant training program in its Morris, Somerset, and Essex county clinic locations.

"Zufall Health is grateful, once again, to Delta Dental for supporting two important dental initiatives through their SMILE Grant program. First, we are excited to fully bring back Zufall’s Smiles for Our Heroes event, which has been paused since 2020 due to COVID-19. This event provides no-cost dental services to eligible veterans,” said Jade Duncan, DDS, Med, SVP of Dental Services at Zufall Health. “Second, we are grateful for additional support for our Dental Assistant training program, which is helping Zufall to address the critical shortage of trained dental assistants. Delta Dental has been a long-term supporter of Zufall Health’s mission to provide high-quality care to underserved communities," said Dr. Duncan.

Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Coastal & Northern NJ will also receive $10,000 to provide dental education and preventive education in their programming settings, promote oral health literacy, and develop infrastructure that provides all children with access to age-appropriate dental care.

“For more than 37 years, a major focus of the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation has been and continues to be helping improve the oral health of New Jersey residents,” said Dennis G. Wilson, president and CEO of Delta Dental of New Jersey and vice president of the Delta Dental Foundation. “You can’t put a price on a healthy smile. These projects renew our oral care commitment to our communities and address the challenges they face head on.”

The more than $808,000 in grant funding will reach nearly all 21 of New Jersey’s counties through a range of mini or major SMILE grants that will help renew or start programs addressing the dental workforce pipeline and maintaining the dental health of seniors, developmentally disabled adults and children, disadvantaged children, and veterans.

This year, the DDNJ Foundation is funding a special series of grants dedicated to establishing or expanding dental assisting programs and school-to-career programs for high school students in memory of Dr. Gene F. Napoliello, who served as the Foundation’s longtime Chairman.

+++

#####

About Delta Dental

Delta Dental of New Jersey, Inc. is New Jersey's leading dental benefits company, providing or administering coverage to more than 1.9 million people through contracts with groups and individuals in New Jersey and Connecticut. In Connecticut, Delta Dental of Connecticut, Inc. is a licensed insurer that writes dental and vision coverage on an insured basis, and Delta Dental of New Jersey administers self-funded dental benefit programs.

Offering dental benefits since 1969, Delta Dental of New Jersey's mission is to promote oral health to the greatest number of people by providing accessible dental benefit programs of the highest quality, service, and value. We are a not-for-profit service corporation and, as a member of Delta Dental Plans Association, we're part of a network that provides national dental coverage to more than 85 million people. For more information, visit DeltaDentalNJ.com.