News Item
Cooke Elementary School alumna named PRASAD's Elliott T. Sparkle
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month - PRASAD Children’s Dental Health Program (CDHP)
February 2010
In 1996, PRASAD CDHP held a “Name the
Elephant” contest for local elementary school children. The winner,
Cooke Elementary School student Danielle
DeLorenzo
was just 7-years-old at the time. She’s 21 now, but she remembers
exactly how she came up with the winning name: “I was thinking, ‘Elly
the Elephant,’ but he was dressed like a boy, so I named him Elliott
and the T was for Teeth – Elliott’s Teeth Sparkle, and that’s how I
named him. I was so excited to win!”
Elliott is proud to have his picture on the mobile clinic that
PRASAD CDHP uses to bring dental services to children at their
schools in the rural, areas of Sullivan and Ulster counties, in New
York State. Since 1996, this unique program has delivered dental
services and education to more than 55,000 children, and Elliott has
been always been a loyal friend. He leads parades, visits special
events and does all he can to promote the program and encourage
children to take good care of their teeth.
Elliott is a fun-filled character, but he knows how serious his
mission is; In the US, students lose an estimated 51 million school
hours annually because of dental-related illness. Untreated, dental
problems can cause persistent
pain, infections, inability to eat and low self-esteem.
While yearly dental check-ups are essential, Elliott knows some
simple steps that we can take every day to improve our oral health:
• Brush at least twice a day and floss daily
• Eat a healthy diet and limit starchy or sugary food
• See your dentist twice a year
Photos:
Twenty-one year-old Danielle DeLorenzo
Elliott T. Sparkle aka youth volunteer Jesse Miller on the steps of the PRASAD mobile dental clinic.
PRASAD Children’s Dental Health
Program provides dental care services and dental health education to
children in Sullivan and Ulster counties.
For more information, visit
www.prasadcdhp.org or call 845-434-0376.