Dental Lifeline Network • Illinois (DLN • IL) has received a $15,000 grant from the Telligen Community Initiative (TCI), a private, Iowa-based charitable foundation that supports innovative and forward-looking health-related projects. DLN • IL was one of 21 grantees selected for TCI’s 2022 Illinois and Iowa-based funding cycle.
The generous grant will help low-income Illinois residents with disabilities or those who are medically fragile receive comprehensive dental care that improves their health, addresses their pain and discomfort, and enhances their well-being and quality of life. The funds will support the coordination of services provided through 771 dentists and 173 dental laboratories who volunteer for DLN’s Donated Dental Services (DDS) program in Illinois.
“Oral health is critical for individuals’ wellbeing, and this grant will enable DLN • IL to provide hundreds of people across Illinois with the treatment they need,” said Dr. Sharon Perlman, President of the DLN • IL Board of Directors. “We are excited to begin this partnership with TCI.”
The DLN • IL DDS program has provided over $26 million in donated services to nearly 7,600 patients since it began in 1990. Telligen Community Initiative’s grant is a significant addition to this effort, and will contribute to the progress being made through the national DDS program. For over 35 years, DLN has partnered with volunteer dentists, laboratories, and strategic partners across the country and connected vulnerable people in need of care to comprehensive dentistry. Since its inception in 1985, DLN’s DDS programs have provided over 167,000 individuals with more than $523 million in donated treatment across the U.S.
