All orthodontists strive to create beautiful smiles and healthy bites for their patients. But for one orthodontist practice in Cleveland County, the mission of creating smiles extends beyond the practice to the community in which they live and work.
“We are constantly learning and evolving our treatment to strive to make our processes as comfortable and efficient as possible for our patients. At Craig & Streight Orthodontists, we also believe what we do is more than that,” says Robi Lynn Craig, D.D.S.
“We know that there are people attached to those teeth and those people belong to the community. We are fortunate to have an opportunity to get to know and interact and hopefully make an impact on each of their lives. We strive to provide a positive, authentic, trusting, caring and innovative culture that impacts our patients, their families, our staff, and all others that interact with our business in the community. We are so lucky to have such a fulfilling and rewarding job day in and day out.
“Being small-business owners within the communities in which we grew up provides a very unique opportunity to give back directly to the communities that molded and shaped us,” Dr. Craig added. “We understand the support we had along the way in order to achieve our goals. We understand the support and trust the community shows our business.”
Dr. Craig, along with Drs. Ryan Streight and Heather Kierl and the rest of the CSO staff, feel they have a responsibility to make a bigger impact where they can.
“We don’t take that responsibility lightly. Philanthropy is one of our core values and missions as a company. We search out organizations we can partner with and support that are making a substantial impact and helping the people that make up the community.”
And that is how they discovered Center for Children and Families Inc.
“CCFI’s mission, to ensure that children have a safe and secure environment in which to grow and thrive, fits perfectly with our core values,” Craig says. “CCFI accepts donations, provides volunteer opportunities throughout the year and hosts their ‘Hands and Hearts’ annual fundraiser. We have provided support in various ways over the years. We know that our support goes a long way to help them achieve their goals to heal children, empower youth and strengthen families. We are blessed to be able to support even a small part of what they do. Please check them out if you are interested in helping a tremendous organization!”
About CCFI
Center for Children and Families Inc. is a trauma-informed agency that serves children and their families throughout Cleveland County who have experienced, or are at risk of experiencing, child abuse, neglect or other adverse experiences. While its continuum of care is broad, with services ranging in intensity, its focus has always been to ensure that all children have safe, secure, nurturing environments and caring adults in their lives, explained Amanda Pulis, CCFI marketing and communications director.
Amanda noted that approximately 25% of the nonprofit’s annual revenue is acquired through individual and corporate donations from the community.
“While this amount varies from month to month, on average, we need close to $37,000 per month in order to best serve families in need and cover the demand for our services,” Amanda said. “In addition to sustainable income from community members who’ve made multi-year pledges, CCFI also relies on in-kind donations of diapers, school supplies, pre-packaged snacks and other items to help offset costs.”
In addition to financial help and in-kind donations, as noted above and on their website, Cleveland County Lifestyle readers can help by volunteering with CCFI.
“Volunteers are critical to the success of our agency and truly make a difference in a child’s life. We offer a variety of opportunities, many of which are available year-round, for individuals and groups who are looking to help further our mission,” Amanda said.
“These opportunities include mentoring children after school at Boys & Girls Club of Norman, packing diapers for the CCFI Baby Pantry and cleaning/sanitizing our play therapy rooms, among many other tasks. You can also host a diaper drive or other resource drive to help supply our agency with much needed items like individually packages snacks, school supplies or books. Even though our direct service volunteer opportunities look a little different right now due to the pandemic, there are still several ways the community can get involved!”
Due to the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, mental health has been brought to the forefront and is being addressed in a more open manner, Amanda shared. The need for mental health services is on the rise and, while CCFI does receive funding from SoonerCare and private insurance, there are still uncovered expenses associated with providing these services.
“We were also forced to cancel our annual in-person fundraising event and switch to a virtual platform,” Amanda said. “Although this transition was fairly seamless, overall event donations were lower than expected. One huge drawback from not having an in-person event was the loss of new multi-year pledging donors. This decrease greatly reduced our agency’s sustainable funding and will impact our budgeting for many years.”
Amanda added, “Building meaningful relationships is a core value held by our employees, the Board of Directors and volunteers, and is relevant in every service we deliver. Every day, we dedicate our lives to create better and brighter futures for children and families in our community because we know that people love, learn and grow in the context of their important relationships. Our work is based on the essential truth that healthy, supportive relationships form the basis of every baby and child's development and success in life.”
Early Days
CCFI began in 1969 as a shelter for youth, from birth to 18 years old, who needed a safe and nurturing place to stay while waiting to be placed in foster care. Known then as Juvenile Services Inc. (JSI), the organization met a vital need in the community while laying the foundation for its mission “to improve the lives of children.”
Judge David Rambo, along with Judges Elvin Brown and Alan Couch, signed the first incorporation papers, which were authorized by the state on June 13, 1969.
“Their love for the community and passion for child advocacy is what truly fueled CCFI to become the agency it is today,” said Amanda.
Learn more about CSO at CraigandStreight.com and about CCFI at CCFINorman.org.
