The gift of cosmetic dentistry: A smile means so much for New York teenager

Gesael Charles is a 16-year-old girl from Bayshore, NY who has a passion for singing and loves to laugh and talk with her friends.  Sadly, her broken smile made this aspiring singer shy and self-conscious. 

She couldn’t laugh like a carefree teenager because she was afraid that others would see her twisted, crooked teeth. Ridiculed by her classmates, she was bullied at school for because of her smile. When she sang with her church choir, she covered her mouth and looked down at the ground. Gesael’s smile even caused her jaw pain and headaches, making it difficult to concentrate in school and sleep at night.

Many teenagers cringe at the thought of getting braces, but not Gesael. She longed to have a beautiful, healthy smile that no longer caused her pain or invited teasing from her classmates. As a single parent with disabilities, Gesael’s mother struggled to make ends meet for Geseal and her three siblings and simply could not afford to get her the care she so desperately needed.

In spite of her own personal struggles, Geseal helps out in her community as much as she can. Gesael believes that you should put others before yourself, which is why she participates in the church’s outreach program. It makes her happy to see others happy. 

Tomorrow’s SMILES^®, a teen program of National Children’s Oral Health Foundation: America’s ToothFairy^®, is giving Gesael a chance for the beautiful, healthy smile she longs for.  Sponsored by 3M ESPE and the Patterson Foundation, this program provides at-risk teens with smile-saving services to help restore their self-confidence and prepare them for healthy and productive futures.  Caring volunteer dentists provide donated services for prescreened, underserved teens and have access to generously donated products from Invisalign^® and Nobel Biocare^™(including Procera^®).

Thanks to generously donated services from Vitagliano Orthodontics, Gesael now holds her head up high as she proudly sings in church.  Grateful for the opportunity to have a healthy smile, Gesael plans to “Pay It Forward” and help educate younger children in her community about the importance of good oral health. Amazed at the transformation they have seen in Gesael, her mother and siblings are going to help her too! 

You can help transform a teen’s needless pain and suffering into a beautiful smile and the promise of a happy, healthy future by volunteering for the America’s ToothFairy Tomorrow’s SMILES program.  Register today at www.TomorrowsSMILES.org or visit www.AmericasToothFairy.org learn more about all of our life-changing programs!