Story originally printed in the Tomah Journal or online at www.tomahjournal.com

Published - Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Local dentists donate care to 25 youngsters

The Deer Creek Dental Clinic, along with more than 300 dentists around Wisconsin, donated their services in the Give Kids a Smile campaign on Feb. 16.

Dr. Mark Mueller and Dr. Deborah Marynak, along with members of the Deer Creek Dental staff, provided treatment to 25 children. Deer Creek Dental Clinic Office Manager Karen Sue said that it was at least the third time that Dr. Mueller had participated in the Give Kids a Smile campaign.

The children came from area schools and ranged from elementary school to age 17. Checkups, x-rays and sealants were provided for the children. Some also needed restorative dentistry, which was completed. The dental work for all 25 kids took nearly six hours, Sue said.

While Deer Creek Dental did not go into specifics on a dollar amount for the free dental work, they did say it was over $8,000 in donated services.

The services were provided to children who come from lower-income families. The Deer Creek Dental Clinic contacted the Tomah and Mauston School Districts to select the children for the free service. Most of the students came from Tomah, where nurse Marge Robinson helped search for and nominate children for the service.

“We worked very closely with Marge,” Sue said. “We couldn’t have done this without her.”

In addition to the dental treatment, educational materials on oral health were distributed to families. The dental staff worked continuously until all children had been treated. Sue said that the event was a success and that Deer Creek Dental hopes to be able to do it again in the future.

“It was very successful and rewarding,” Sue said. “We were all pleased with it and we hope to do it next year as well.”

All stories copyright 2006 Tomah Journal and other attributed sources.