February 22, 2008

The privilege of giving

By Jessica V. Malonso, DMD
Special to the Times

Malonso Family Dental started the New Year away from our Evergreen community, but in a community that brings us back to our roots. We were in the Philippines participating in a medical/dental and relief mission back in my father's hometown, San Juan, Ilocos Sur. This mission provides services to those in the town that are in the most need and do not have access and resources to many basic needs that we sometimes take for granted in our lives.

This mission was established 10 years ago by my parents and their good friends as a way to give back to those not as fortunate in their hometown. For those of us who were born in the United States, such as my husband Rob, and myself, it is an opportunity to share our knowledge and training as dentists. It is a humbling experience to say the least.

Something as simple as fluoride that is a part of our daily routines because it is in our toothpaste is almost nonexistent for many of the people we treated. I spoke with the local public health dentist about this and he told me that this is due to their economic situation and lack of education within the schools and community about basic oral hygiene. Political red tape prevents proper funding for this and basically leaves it up to people who are willing to lend their time, energy and resources to help.

We go the Philippines every two years for this mission not only because we want to help, but also because we were blessed with the privilege to give. Many of us can look at our own lives and see that we have that privilege. We left the Philippines with goals for improvement for the next mission in 2010.

We hope to be able to implement oral hygiene education, provide toothbrushes and toothpaste to the underserved people of the town and expand our dental services to them. Between now and the next mission, Rob and I look to those in our community in Evergreen for ideas, monetary donations or even a simple toothbrush donation because we know how much a difference we can make at a grassroots level. Feel free to stop by our office or give us a call about this.