Volunteers provide free dental care
Dentist Greg Williams, left, and assistant Edie Torres, right, fix a filling for a patient. The two were among the volunteers providing free dental care at a clinic Friday in Moses Lake.
CHERYL SCHWEIZER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Dentist Sam Minagawa, left, said he volunteers to provide free care because it’s part of his mission to serve others. Minagawa and assistant Lorinda Sheldon, right, perform dental work for a patient Friday at a clinic sponsored by the Moses Lake Seventh-day Adventist Church.
MOSES LAKE — From the outside the Crestview Christian School looked like it does every summer day last Friday and Sunday, but inside it was a dental clinic, and a busy one at that. The Moses Lake Seventh-day Adventist Church congregation and an Adventist charitable organization teamed up to offer a free walk-in clinic.
“We’re offering free dental services to the community. Moses Lake and the surrounding area,” organizer Linda Morgan said.
“This is our fourth dental clinic,” she added. The coronavirus pandemic interrupted the program, which resumed in 2022.
Patients filled out forms and received a diagnosis, just like any dental clinic, then got their teeth cleaned, got fillings and teeth extracted if necessary. The difference with other clinics was that all the dentists and hygienists were volunteers. So were the people preparing trays of dental supplies and the people taking health information.
The patients were getting additional services besides.
“We provide massage, and haircuts, and lunch,” Morgan said.
The hair stylists, masseuses and the crew cooking lunch also were volunteers, she said.
Friday the volunteer medical professionals included seven dentists and five hygienists. Paul Kwon and Greg Williams took the day off from their practice in Quincy to volunteer.
“Service - I feel like it’s our calling,” Kwon said. “It’s so nice to give back to the community.”
With his day job it’s not as easy to take advantage of charitable opportunities, Kwon said, so he volunteers for things when he can.
“It’s a lot of fun and we’re able to help people,” Williams said.
Sam Minagawa is a veteran of the program.
“We do clinics all over, domestic and international also. All of us volunteer,” Minagawa said. “It’s almost like a mission. We like to give back.”
The congregation worked with Caring Hands International, based in Eugene, Oregon. Founder Randy Meyer said he provides all the tools, dental chairs and equipment, and the host congregation provides the medical professionals and support staff.
While the staff is all volunteer there are expenses associated with the clinic, and those are paid by the host congregation, Meyer said.
Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.
