Share A Smile program for kids in need of major orthodontic care

An Orange County-based charity that puts smiles back on the faces of underprivileged kids in need of major orthodontic care is the first charitable organization featured as part of a unique social media campaign designed to inspire people to get involved with nonprofits.

A documentary-style video profile featuring Share A Smile co-founders Mike and Kim Robertson and a few of the participating local dentists and orthodontists who volunteer their time and talents to repair youthful smiles - free of charge - can now be seen on YouTube, at www.shareasmile.com, and at www.agendabe.com.

The Share A Smile video is the first of dozens of video "webisodes" scheduled to be produced and distributed online by amateur cyclist Adam Benton, whose brush with death caused him to set aside his career plans to found AgendaBe, a nonprofit dedicated to helping charitable organizations tell their story virally using social media platforms, including Facebook and Twitter.

On July 1, Benton and a team of videographers left Los Angeles on a 90-day cross-country bike tour scheduled to end September 30 in Washington, D.C. At each stop along the way, they'll be producing and posting similar webisodes and other informative and entertaining content - most of it geared to encouraging people to get involved with charities that inspire them. Visit www.agendabe.com for more information about the organization and the tour.

"Every charity has a voice, but not every charity has a stage," says Benton. "By providing people like Mike and Kim Robertson and organizations like Share A Smile with a platform to tell their story and then sharing that message with people around the world using social media, we hope to plant a seed that ignites a movement."

"Smiles are infectious - unless it is painful or embarrassing to have one," says Mike Robertson, founder and CEO of Ocean Media, an independent media planning and buying agency based in Huntington Beach with an office in Los Angeles. "Adam's 'Inspire Good Tour' provides a global stage from which we can talk about the good things Share A Smile does for kids and hopefully inspire people to get involved in our effort, learn about other charities, or share the story of their own favorite cause."

Founded six years ago, Share A Smile has launched its first official fundraising campaign, at www.shareasmile.com. After years of accepting donations informally, the organization - a 501(c)(3) non-profit - is aiming to expand its outreach to affected children. Unlike most charities, which have to account for substantial administrative overhead, Share A Smile takes care of 100 percent of those expenses separately.

Its volunteer children's dentists and orthodontists already have helped nearly 100 young people in Southern California smile again with self-assurance.

Like Benton's effort, Share A Smile was born out of a personal experience. Mike and Kim witnessed the harassment of one of their daughter's friends and decided to get involved. Once they did, it soon became clear to them that they could not stop by helping just one child.

"Most feel-good stories have one of those types of moments," the Robertsons add. "Once we realized the need, we started the Share A Smile organization. It's an amazing feeling to be able to help so many of these truly great kids catch a break in life. In doing so we also hope to grow a 'pay it forward' mentality in the hearts and minds of those we are able to help."