ADA Recognizes Mr. Kess’ Contributions to Helping Elevate the Oral Health Profession, and Accelerating Access to Oral Care for Millions in Underserved Communities
Presidential Citations from the ADA were developed to commend an individual for significant contributions to advancing the oral health of the public and the profession of dentistry. Given solely at the discretion of the President as a special recognition, the Citation was delivered by Dr. Cesar R. Sabates to Mr. Kess in recognition for his decades-long, collaborative work with the ADA and the ADA Foundation, including his impact on the Give Kids A Smile (GKAS) national program. GKAS has provided more than seven million underserved children with free oral health education and services since its launch in 2003.
“I am humbled to receive such a special recognition from Dr. Sabates and the ADA, an organization that has done so much to elevate the valuable role of oral health professionals, ensure access to oral care for underserved communities, and help improve the overall health of the public,” said Mr. Kess. “At Henry Schein, we will continue to help advance ADA’s mission of providing quality oral care for all patients by ensuring practitioners have access to innovative products and digital solutions. Together with the ADA and public-private partnerships that we have helped develop through the years, we will continue to help foster a healthier future for all while breaking down barriers to care.”
Of the many contributions Mr. Kess has made to dentistry, the GKAS program, one of the largest, charitable dental health programs in the country, is a highlight of his career. Driven by his passion and leadership for the program since its inception, Mr. Kess has helped organize support from Henry Schein’s supplier partners, contributing to the $20 million in oral health care products made available to the program. In addition, Henry Schein’s distribution team has spent thousands of hours preparing and sending more than 40,000 dental kits to help ensure volunteers of the program had the supplies needed to deliver much needed oral health care.
In addition to recognizing Steve Kess at the Give Kids A Smile reception held during SmileCon, Dr. Jeffrey Dalin, co-founder, GKAS, was recognized as the recipient of the ADA’s Humanitarian award.
“Oral health equity is a priority for the ADA and the need for GKAS has never been greater than over the past couple years,” said Cesar R. Sabates, D.D.S., president of the ADA. “It gives me immense pleasure to recognize two individuals during the 20th anniversary celebration reception, who have been incomparable leaders in the successes of this program. Dr. Dalin, named the 2022 recipient of the ADA’s Humanitarian Award, and Mr. Kess, recipient of the ADA’s Presidential Citation Award. Both of these individuals are extremely deserving of these prestigious awards.”
For more information about the Give Kids A Smile program, please visit https://www.henryschein.com/us-en/Corporate/GiveKidsASmile.aspx.
