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‘Donate a Toothbrush’ lands NJ student big scholarship money

For one incoming New York University college freshman, the key to her success — both in school and in life — has had much do with her not taking anything for granted.

The simple good fortune of being able to brush her teeth gave 18-year-old Paige Alenick of Wyckoff Lake, N.J., enough pause to conceive of a far-reaching philanthropic cause.

Three years ago, Alenick was brushing her teeth when a thought occurred to her.

“I was thinking about how lucky I am to have such a small thing in my life. In Third World countries — where there’s not enough food, water or shelter — not enough people stop to think about oral health,” she says.

After conducting a bit of research, “I decided that collecting toothbrushes was an easy way to help. You don’t even need toothpaste. Just using the brush…can help guard against oral disease,” says Paige.

In 2011, during her sophomore year in high school, Paige started the Donate A Toothbrush (donateatoothbrush.com) project to set her vision in motion.

At first, “I began asking friends and family to donate new toothbrushes and we ended up with a few hundred. I just wanted to see where it could go,” recalls Paige.

With help from her father, Paige created a website for her effort, generated some local and regional press and, “It took off from there,” she says.

To help distribute the donations, “We came across a dental mission, World Dental Relief (worlddentalrelief.com) which is run by Ron Lamb, D.M.D. Since then, we’ve had a partnership with him. He’s been a huge part in the success of this all. With his help, our toothbrushes have reached people in need in Ecuador, Ethiopia, Costa Rica, and Kenya.”

In recognition of her good work, Paige was invited to speak this year at the United Nations Assembly Youth Conference.

To date, Donate A Toothbrush has collected upward of 68,000 toothbrushes, according to Paige.

Additionally, Paige applied to the Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program as she began her college search in her junior year of high school. The Kohl’s program rewards young volunteers for their community service and, since its inception in 2001, has awarded more than $3.9 million in scholarships and prizes, according to a company press release.

Having learned of her acceptance to New York University’s (NYU) Liberal Studies program just last month, Paige received the timely news that she’d been selected as one of Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program’s 10 national scholarship winners.

“My family and I were surprised. I was one of ten national winners to receive $10,000 toward college and a beautiful plaque that’s now in my room. It’s very cool,” she says.

Empowered by the impact her philanthropic endeavor has had, Paige has set her sights on expanding it as a college student.

It helps that her older sister, Ashley, a recent graduate of NYU, continues to be a huge supporter of Paige’s project and has long been a fellow community service partner.

Since the ages of 7 and 10, respectively, and all the way through high school, Paige and Ashley volunteered their time on a weekly basis to the Joining Old and Young (J.O.Y.) organization. The musical community service group brings children to sing for the elderly in nursing homes and retirement communities.

“We both enjoyed singing and the way the music sparked memories in the residents. In rooms full of wheelchairs and stretchers, the music got their heads moving and feet tapping,” says Paige.
Ashley agrees.

“I think I learned the value of working together and how doing such a small thing can bring so much joy to someone else’s life,” she says.

In addition to planning to take the LSAT exam and attend law school, Ashley is helping Paige file the necessary paperwork for Donate A Toothbrush to become a 501 C3 organization.

“It will allow us to accept money, which would go directly to buying or shipping toothbrushes,” says Ashley.

Through Ashley’s NYU faculty connections, “We’re trying to figure out a way to raise awareness in the NYU community. Paige has already reached out to the president of NYU. Another professor who works in the dental school there has given us good tips on how to make our entity more sustainable, to have more of a target audience and follow how we’re improving lives over time,” says Ashley.

To those interested in launching their own do-good effort, “Pick something you’re passionate about,” says Ashley. “Don’t just do something for the sake of it. Pick something you enjoy doing – something you think can make a huge difference.”

For Paige, the past couple of years have motivated her even more strongly to keep an arm outstretched to the world.

“I want to get involved in community service clubs on campus. If I can get a toothbrush drive going, I’m encouraged to take an active part in more clubs and to do more things. A lot of people don’t think they can do anything, but you’ll never know where something can go unless you try,” she says.