VCU School of Dentistry partners with the Virginia Dental Association Foundation to provide dental care to the underserved for the Wise Mission of Mercy project.Wise MOM event provides life changing experience for patients and dental students
Since 2000, the Wise Mission of Mercy project has provided free dental care to underserved residents of Southwest Virginia and surrounding communities with limited access to oral health care.
This year's project was no different. During the two-day event on July 28 and 29, more than 300 volunteers served 458 patients, providing free oral health care valued at more than $471,000. Patients received free dental care such as dental exams, cleanings, fillings, restorations and extractions.
Among the contingent of volunteers who traveled to Wise, Va., were approximately 60 VCU School of Dentistry students, faculty, residents and staff.
“With remarkable talent and heartwarming care, we provided oral health care to so many in need. A challenging unmet need for oral health care still exists in our rural communities and the MOM clinic is just one step in addressing it,” said Lyndon Cooper, D.D.S., Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Dentistry. “We are committed to finding solutions to access to oral health care throughout the Commonwealth and educating our students of this need through such service learning experiences. Thank you to all of the VCU volunteers who volunteered at this year's MOM event.”
The MOM project was created in 2000 by Dr. Terry Dickinson, former executive director of the Virginia Dental Association Foundation and adjunct faculty at VCU School of Dentistry. He brought the VDAF and VCU together to start a national movement of field-based charity dental care that has been replicated in more than 30 states. Over the past 24 years, Mission of Mercy has served more than 24,000 patients and provided over $21.5 million in free dental care in Wise County alone. Across Virginia, a total of over $50 million in care has been provided to those in need.
MOM events are an important tool for addressing the need for access to oral health care. It’s something that’s all too familiar to third-year dental student Madelyn Lawrence. She grew up in a small town of 150 people with the closest dentist more than an hour away.
“I am very familiar with how a lot of the residents here feel. Access to dental care is just not great everywhere and that’s a hard reality to face,” said Lawrence.
Lawrence is also a graduate of UVA-Wise, where she played volleyball and earned her bachelor’s degree in biochemistry. The UVA-Wise David J. Prior Convocation Center has generously hosted the Wise MOM project since 2018.
“Coming to Wise reminded me a lot of home. The small town feel. Everyone here is so amazing. They love each other. They're such a close community and they're very deserving of access to health care, yet they just don't have it,” Lawrence explained.
Lawrence was first introduced to the MOM project after meeting several VCU School of Dentistry students who were in town for the event. From that point forward, she targeted VCU School of Dentistry for dental school and got connected and began volunteering for the event. Now as a dental student, she has an opportunity to be more involved.
Students play a vital role in the success of the MOM project from setting up equipment, sterilizing instruments, assisting dentists and providing free dental care. They also work behind the scenes to help coordinate the event and drive trucks full of supplies to Wise.
“I urge anyone who has not volunteered at a MOM project to do so,” said Lawrence. “It’s so rewarding. There are people who have severe pain for months and months because they need an extraction, but they haven't been able to go to the dentist or afford it. We can do that for them. Seeing people smile after receiving their treatment, it builds confidence and self-esteem. It’s life changing.”
That was the message Lawrence had for hundreds of volunteers on day one of this year's event when she delivered a speech during the team huddle.
“You are going to change a lot of lives today,” said Lawrence. “I hope you continue to serve and volunteer for communities like this who need it and hopefully one day they won’t need it anymore.”
The project is not only life changing for patients. It’s life changing for the students and volunteers as well. Lawrence credits the Wise MOM project with finding her purpose of serving the underserved.
“My dad has always told me. ‘Keep as many doors open as you can and your path will choose you.’ I feel like that’s what happened when I was first introduced to this event. It changed my life,” said Lawrence. “I was a puddle of tears whenever I first volunteered here. I'm pretty sure I cried last year too. There's just something that touches me every time that I'm here. It just made me want to choose this path. The doors were open and this path chose me.”
Although the 2023 Wise MOM project is over, there will be more opportunities for volunteers to participate in MOM projects throughout the Commonwealth. The next large event, the Piedmont Smiles/Fauquier Mission of Mercy project, will be held at Fauquier High School on Saturday, October 7. Additional information about registration will be released in the coming weeks.