Awards include nonprofit grants and recognitions of individuals
WELLESLEY, Mass., Sept. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Sun Life and DentaQuest, part of Sun Life U.S., have announced this year’s recipients of the Health Access Hero Awards, which recognize nonprofits and individual change-makers working to broaden access to health services and improve health outcomes for communities in need. Areas of focus include education, awareness, treatment and access for oral health, diabetes, obesity prevention and nutrition.
Sun Life and DentaQuest: 2025 Health Access Hero Awards
“Sun Life and DentaQuest are committed to broadening access to care through philanthropic initiatives that can have large-scale impact at local levels,” said David Healy, president, Sun Life U.S. “Over the years, we have had the privilege of supporting many incredible programs and witnessing the meaningful results achieved. Congratulations to these Health Access Heroes who work every day to strengthen their local communities and move the needle toward equitable health access for all.”
There are two tracks to the Health Access Hero awards: grants to fund innovative health and wellness programs at community organizations, and recognition of individuals who have made a significant impact in their communities. Individual Heroes also receive a $10,000 donation to the charity of their choice. The Health Access Hero Awards have provided more than $3.5 million in grants and recognized more than 130 individuals across the country to date.
The 2025 winners of the Health Access Hero Awards are:
Individual winners
Dr. Douglas Cross, DDS, Dental Director, Excelth
As Dental Director at EXCELth, Inc., Dr. Cross works to expand access to dental services across Louisiana. His innovative approach led to the implementation of the state’s first teledentistry program and first general dentistry residency program through NYU-Langone, addressing dental shortages in rural areas. His combined efforts have positively affected the dental health of over 5,000 individuals across the state.
Rashida Ferdinand, Founder and CEO, Sankofa Community Development Corporation (CDC)
Rashida Ferdinand, founder and CEO of Sankofa Community Development Corporation, is improving preventive healthcare access in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward. Through the development of a healthy food hub, she is helping to address food and health disparities by providing affordable, locally sourced produce in the area as well as free healthy cooking, nutrition education, diabetes prevention and CVD education classes. Rashida works in partnership with local healthcare practitioners, civic leaders and residents, to build a system that ensures food justice and supports community wellness.
Nancy Gaudet, Founder, Type One Families
Nancy was profoundly affected by the diagnosis of her son’s type 1 diabetes at age nine. Faced with the challenges of research, nutritional needs, and other hurdles, she realized how impactful it could be to have a community of parents in the same situation to talk to and lean on. Type One Families has multiple parent communities along the North and South Coasts of Massachusetts, and continues to grow.
Dr. Scott Miller, DDS, Founder and Director, Appalachian Highlands Community Dental Center
Founder of Appalachian Highlands Community Dental Center (AHCDC) in Abingdon, Va., Dr. Miller is dedicated to improving access to dental care, serving more than 8,000 patients and training 29 new dentists since 2020. He has tripled the clinical capacity of AHCDC, established the first local digital dental lab, and directs the Johnston Memorial Hospital Advanced Education in General Dentistry residency program, where more than 25% of graduates choose to practice locally.
Dr. Bradley Smith, NMD, Medical Director, Arizona Mission of Mercy (MOM)
Since joining Arizona MOM more than 20 years ago, Dr. Smith has significantly expanded mobile clinical operations to serve diverse, underserved communities across Maricopa County. Ninety-nine percent of patients are uninsured and 85% live below the federal poverty line. Dr. Smith has been instrumental in launching a Comprehensive Diabetes Management and Education program, addressing the needs of the 56% of patients with type 2 diabetes.
Joshua Williams, Founder, Joshua’s Heart Foundation (JHF)
Joshua Williams was recognized for his work to address food insecurity in underserved communities across South Florida, which he began at the age of four. Twenty years later, he has led and inspired over 60,000 youth volunteers in the fight against hunger and poverty, empowering them to address social change. Joshua’s Heart Foundation (JHF) has reached more than 800,000 individuals and distributed more than eight million pounds of nutritious food and essential hygiene items to families in need.
Grant winners
Bay Area Community Health, California, $100,000
The result of a merger of two federally qualified health centers, Bay Area Community Health provides ongoing health services to communities in need. Its clinics are open seven days a week, and provide medical, dental, vision and behavioral health care regardless of a person’s ability to pay. The grant will fund their Diabetes & Oral Health Integrated Care program, which addresses the inherent connection between oral health services and diabetes care.
Breakthrough T1D, California, $50,000
Breakthrough T1D, formerly JDRF, is the leading global type 1 diabetes (T1D) research and advocacy organization. Type 1 diabetes can now be identified early, before insulin is required, with a simple blood test that looks for T1D autoantibodies. Breakthrough T1D’s early detection pilot clinic program is designed to increase access to T1D screening in medically underserved communities across the country and inform broader clinical implementation of T1D screening in the future. The grant will support T1D early detection through screening in partnership with Touro University California’s Mobile Diabetes Education Center (MOBEC.)
The Health Wagon, Virginia, $50,000
The Health Wagon provides access to integrated medical care throughout the Appalachian Mountains at several mobile and stationary clinics. The grant will support a diabetes management initiative at the dental clinic, located in a medically underserved, designated health professional shortage area. At least 700 additional diabetic patients will gain access to oral health care and education about oral hygiene and diabetes management, which can positively influence overall health and wellness in the long-term.
Independence Gardens, Texas, $25,000
Their mission is to provide comprehensive food and health education through hands-on learning experiences. Independence Gardens has impacted over 10,000 children through its outdoor edible learning spaces that integrate various subjects with nutrition and agriculture lessons. Their Beanstalk Project introduces hydroponic towers in school cafeterias, enabling year-round produce cultivation and offering students continuous access to fresh vegetables while teaching sustainable farming techniques.
Karis Community Health, Tennessee, $100,000
Karis Community Health has been serving Bradley County since 2013, providing more than $13 million in dental services. Originally Karis Dental, the organization changed its name after recognizing other underlying health conditions among many patients. What started as a faith-based clinic aimed at closing adult dental care gaps, has become an essential community resource that also provides medical care, chronic disease management and health education. The grant will help expand its reach to additional underserved counties in need.
Maine Community Integration (MCI), Maine, $25,000
MCI works with immigrant families in Maine who face ongoing barriers with access to care, including language, culture, finances, and health literacy. The grant will support the launch of Access to Care: Dental & Health Equity, which focuses on new families in Maine and addresses oral health, type 2 diabetes prevention, and healthy eating habits through education, outreach and care coordination.
Monitor My Health, Connecticut, $50,000
Founded in 2016 by Dr. Dana Wade, Monitor My Health aims to help people prevent chronic disease and promote healthier communities by reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes and its related complications. The grant will fund MyHEALTHExpress, a new mobile laboratory that will bring blood sugar and blood pressure screenings to underserved communities in Connecticut, such as the New Haven, Bridgeport, and Hartford areas.
Neighborhood Services Organization, Oklahoma, $100,000
Neighborhood Services Organization (NSO) is focused on addressing Oklahoma’s poor oral health outcomes. NSO operates the only low-cost dental clinic in Oklahoma, addressing a critical healthcare gap in a state with concerning oral health statistics. Their Oral Health Outreach Program, which was established in 2012, provides essential education, free dental screenings and dental referrals to thousands of low-income individuals who would otherwise go without vital care.
Oceana Community Health, Florida, $25,000
A community health center with locations from Miami to Saint Lucie, Oceana is focused on advancing health equity and expanding access to timely, optimized medical care. Its Diabetes and Dental Access initiative, funded by the Health Access Hero Award grant, aims to improve diabetes identification, management and oral health outcomes for underserved populations, particularly areas affected by recent hurricanes, which can heavily disrupt healthcare access.
For more information about the Health Access Hero Awards and this year’s recipients, visit https://www.dentaquest.com/en/about-us/health-access-heroes.
About Sun Life
Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing asset management, wealth, insurance and health solutions to individual and institutional Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of June 30, 2025, Sun Life had total assets under management of C$1.54 trillion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com.
Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.
Sun Life U.S. is one of the largest providers of employee and government benefits, helping approximately 50 million Americans access the care and coverage they need. Through employers, industry partners and government programs, Sun Life U.S. offers a portfolio of benefits and services, including dental, vision, disability, absence management, life, supplemental health, medical stop-loss insurance, and healthcare navigation. Sun Life employs more than 8,300 people in the U.S., including associates in our partner dental practices and affiliated companies in asset management. Group insurance policies are issued by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (Wellesley Hills, Mass.), except in New York, where policies are issued by Sun Life and Health Insurance Company (U.S.) (Lansing, Mich.). For more information visit our website and newsroom.
About DentaQuest
Sun Life U.S. Dental, which includes DentaQuest, is dedicated to improving the oral health of all through purpose-driven, outcomes-based solutions. We make dental benefits better for everyone through Preventistry® – an inclusive approach centered on preventive, quality care, expanded access and solutions built on valued relationships across the health care ecosystem. We manage dental and vision benefits for approximately 35 million Americans. For 30 years, we have delivered cost-effective benefit plans and services for employer groups, individuals, health plans, and government-sponsored dental programs. We are the largest Medicaid and CHIP dental benefits administrator in the U.S., by membership. We also support direct patient care through an expanding network of approximately 75 dental practices in underserved communities across the United States. Learn more about Sun Life U.S. Dental at sunlife.com/dental and dentaquest.com.
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