Bank of America held a community engagement event at their most recent meeting, and we were so honored to be a part of it. This team of superstars assembled 2,500 Smile Bags, kits filled with essential dental supplies that we regularly hand out to children in our community.
And, we were surprised with an additional unrestricted grant of $20,000. We are so grateful that folks like them and you believe in our mission of bringing healthy, bright smiles to kiddos in Vegas. We can’t wait to grow our impact!
Ashlee Andrews, Las Vegas Market Executive with Bank of America, tells us more about their support.
What has inspired Bank of America to continue supporting Future Smiles?
We have a long-standing commitment to support economic opportunity for diverse people and communities. We are doing this by building upon our existing efforts and leveraging our strengths: creating more affordable housing, expanding home ownership, increasing lending and support to minority-owned small businesses, championing job training and career readiness and addressing health disparities like access to care. That is why we continue to partner with Future Smiles! There’s more than just a smile at stake when a child lacks access to dental care. Dental issues affect the whole child and can directly impact their ability to learn, affect their risk for other systemic health issues, and keep them from developing strong self-esteem and confidence. Bank of America’s investment in Future Smiles helps create health equity for all children in southern Nevada—one smile and one heart at a time.
How does the mission of Future Smiles align with Bank of America’s philanthropic goals?
At Bank of America, we’re guided by a common purpose to help make financial lives better, through the power of every connection. We’re delivering on this through responsible growth with a focus on our environmental, social and governance (ESG) leadership. ESG is embedded across our eight lines of business and reflects how we help fuel the global economy, build trust and credibility, and represent a company that people want to work for, invest in and do business with. It’s demonstrated in the inclusive and supportive workplace we create for our employees, the responsible products and services we offer our clients, and the impact we make around the world in helping local economies thrive. An important part of this work is forming strong partnerships with nonprofits, like Future Smiles. Future Smiles is committed to increasing access to oral health care for all underserved populations by addressing significant barriers to dental treatment, including high cost, lack of accessible dental services in the community, geographic isolation and more. Through our philanthropic giving, we have helped Future Smiles onboard a Community Services Specialist (CSS), who will be responsible for connecting children and families to community services, including identifying, organizing and executing Medicaid enrollment as well as tracking and reporting outcomes. Our funding has also supported existing clinicians and staff, the purchase of dental supplies and professional development for their leadership team.
What is your favorite memory of Future Smiles?
My favorite memories are centered around the numerous volunteer events we have done with Future Smiles throughout the years! Volunteerism and giving back is part of our company’s culture and we are proud of the impact we have had in making Las Vegas a better place to work and live! Each year on average, Bank of America employees volunteer 2 million hours supporting thousands of organizations around the world, mentoring youth, advancing better money habits for individuals, building affordable housing, and so much more to strengthen communities. Our teammates in Southern Nevada have collectively given over 68,000 hours to causes near and dear to them since 2019. If you haven’t volunteered with Future Smiles, I highly recommend reaching out to see how you can make a difference! You are certain to leave smiling!