From the Oral Health Task Force - February 11, 2020

To engage the community and celebrate National Children’s Dental Health Month in February, the Oral Health Task Force held a poster contest for kids to demonstrate how to have healthy teeth. Four winners were selected out of a total of 14 submissions as a result of a tie in two of the three available age categories.

Congratulations to the following winners:

Kindergarten to 2nd Grade (Four total submissions):

• Lucy Kartes, Birch Grove Community School – 2nd Grade

• Ezme Mundell, Great Expectations School – 2nd Grade

3rd-5th Grade (10 total submissions):

• Lilija Smith and Isabella Olson – 4th Graders at Sawtooth Mountain Elementary

• Roland Stoffel, 5th Grade at Birch Grove Community School

No submissions were received for the Grades 6-8 category.

The winners will receive a $25 gift card to the Cook County Whole Foods Coop and an electric toothbrush, and the winning posters will used in Oral Health Task Force communications at a variety of locations over the next year. All of the poster design submissions will be on display in the lower level of the Sawtooth Mountain Clinic outside the North Shore Health Care Foundation/Oral Health Task Force offices, through the end of February.

“We received so many great designs, it was difficult for the committee to choose among them,” said Valerie Marasco Eliasen, Executive Director of the North Shore Health Care Foundation. “This was such a fun, creative way to engage kids of all ages and showcase what good oral health looks like to them. The winners all demonstrated creativity and great information about oral health and how to care for teeth. Congratulations to all”

 About the Task Force

The Oral Health Task Force is a program of the North Shore Health Care Foundation, a home-grown solution unique to Cook County, that works to provide dental care to the children of Cook County and the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. The Task Force provides community education on the importance of early preventative care and provides financial assistance that makes dental care more affordable and accessible, including transportation to appointments if necessary. In addition to leadership from the North Shore Health Care Foundation, the Task Force includes representation from:

• Grand Marais Family Dentistry
• Sawtooth Mountain Clinic 
• Local schools and school nurses
• Cook County Public Health & Human Services, and
• the Grand Portage Health Service.

The program has been made possible through grants from Arrowhead Electric Cooperative, Cliffs Foundation, Cook County Community Foundation, Cook County PHHS Community Funding, Delta Dental of Minnesota Foundation, First & Second St Thrift Store, Grand Marais Lions & Lioness Club, Lloyd K. Johnson Foundation, Medica Foundation, Minnesota Dental Foundation, Minnesota Power Foundation, North Shore Health Care Foundation, Northland Foundation, Sawtooth Mountain Clinic and St. Luke’s Foundation.

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Contact: Valerie Marasco Eliasen, Executive Director – North Shore Health Care Foundation, 218-387-9076, mobile 218-387-5700 or [email protected]

**Art available on request: