By Jake Luplow
“I won’t do it. I’ll have to tell my instructor I won’t speak if I have no teeth,” she said to Linda Barrett, Dental Clinic Manager at the Olympia Union Gospel Mission.
On an August day in 2003, a very shy, timid young gal walked into the Olympia Union Gospel Mission Dental Clinic with teeth withering from abuse and neglect. She came to them as a skeletal being—stripped of nearly all identity—wanting to relieve the pain of her misshaped teeth, but knowing not that the Mission would do more for her than lend her a smile: they would give her hope and identity. “She came to us as a shell of a person. She had just started school and her instructor wanted her to speak in public. We were able to remove those decayed teeth and get her a flipper before she spoke to her peers at Saint Martin’s University. She ended up getting a full ride scholarship, has her PhD now, and is working as a professor at a university,” Linda said.
Every year, many people who need dental extractions, due to infected teeth, receive no treatment at all. Why? Because they simply cannot afford it. Food, shelter, perhaps even diapers are a few of the items their income must go to; dental treatment cannot make it on their “top ten” list of priorities.
Although many people have jobs, they simply cannot afford healthy teeth. Some people’s teeth are so infected that they cannot eat, lest it cause a great deal of pain. Unfortunately, the case for many of these people is that they don’t have the financial means or insurance to cover dental treatment.
Located in Olympia is the Union Gospel Mission Dental Clinic, which houses three operatory chairs and all of the supplies and equipment needed to cater to its patient’s needs. I was very surprised when I walked in. I was expecting a traditional dental facility: walls shined down with paint a few coats too glossy; long, shiny metal slabs of tables longing for a comatose body steeped in anesthetics; and dental professionals suited with white linens and plastic masks, ready to enter a bio hazard facility.
But instead, I entered into a small box of a building that couldn’t have contained more life and spirit. There were people—real people who cared. People willing to take time out of their day to relieve one’s pain. And patients holding at least a scintilla of hope, knowing they would soon know comfort.
According to their website, ougm.org, the clinic first opened in 2003 and serves over 2,000 patients per year. The clinic is run by volunteer dental professionals and serves patients living at or below 200% of the federal poverty level who have no means of paying for their care.
The facility is funded by generous donations from individuals, churches and companies, and through corporate and foundation grants.
A typical day at the clinic closely resembles a day at the emergency room in that they are greatly limited to how many people they can treat. “When the state stopped helping, January two years ago, it became an all-out nightmare for us because this is it; there isn’t anywhere else to go. And people say, ‘I don’t know about that…there has to be another place.’ But, no, you’re looking at the only clinic in Thurston County for people to go to get a tooth removed if they have no means of paying for it,” Linda said.
Sometimes it’s easier to recognize the light when you have known the darkness. Sometimes it’s easier to recognize comfort when you have known discomfort. For many people, all they know is discomfort and pain, but they know there must be comfort just beyond their horizon. And it’s is the Union Gospel Mission’s Dental Clinic that helps make this a reality for many people hiding behind the masks of their own identities.
If you are interested in helping out, the Olympia Union Gospel Mission will be hosting a dental benefit concert, on October 20th at 7:30 p.m., featuring Jazz Senators, Debbi’s Dance, Capitol City Stomp, SOGO Strings, and our very own talented dental community. This event will be held at The Washington Center and tickets range from $10 – $25 plus $3 Center Surcharge. Proceeds help support the dental clinic.
