WASHINGTON D.C. — At the Pentagon Hall of Heroes in the nation’s capital, West Virginia Health Right Inc. was one of a select number of groups to be given a grant to fund its Veterans Dental Program.
The organization was one of five groups to receive a grant of $37,500 at the 19th Annual Newman’s Own Award Ceremony in partnership with the Fisher House Foundation and Military Times.
“We were really excited to get the award,” West Virginia Health Right CEO Angie Settle said. “It’s $37,500 to support our efforts so anytime we can funding we are really excited because it’s money we can turnaround and offer more services to people that we serve.”
According to a press release, the grant will help fund a mobile dental clinic that travels to six rural counties and the dental clinic at Health Right’s Charleston clinic to treat about 500 veterans.
The release also notes that West Virginia Health Right’s Veteran’s Dental Program already provides free dental care, including preventive cleanings, examinations, fillings, extractions and dentures, for low-income West Virginia veterans who lack dental coverage.
“We will be spreading the word for this funding and we want to get more veterans coming in,” Settle said. “We already serve veterans but this will help us serve more veterans.”
Settle noted that they were given the grant award by General Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the 19th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the nation’s highest ranking military officer, in front of many veterans and war heroes.
“To be there in their presence of all those people that were war heroes and to think of all the impact that you are having, it was a pretty touching moment,” Settle said. “I wasn’t ready for how much it would impact me. To have something you believe so wholeheartedly in and feel so strongly about but if you are so close to this mission, sometimes you forget how special it really is. To be named one of five organizations in the nation for our efforts to help veterans is pretty exciting. It was a good day.”