After spending some time volunteering at the orphanage and seeing how much candy, pastries and sugary juices the kids consume and overhearing some of the World Race volunteers mention they rarely ever (or never) see any of the kids brush their teeth. This got me really concerned, especially since dental hygiene is really important for all of us back at home. This gave me an idea for my next project and what I should use my donated funds for. With the help of my amazing friend Jesse Palov, he connected me with a dentist from El Tunco, Dr. Enrique.
I chatted with one of the volunteers from Calvary Chapel, Marina and she thought it was a great idea and wanted to help out as well (hands on and financially). Marina and I started planning, made arrangements with Maria (who runs the orphanage), set-up a classroom for the kids to come in, check-up area, and check-up sheets where we would track all the children's dental records. We also put together a presentation for the kids on "How to brush Your Teeth". The presentation contained pictures of healthy vs. unhealthy teeth, what happens to your teeth when you don't brush/floss them and the proper way to brush and floss. Marina's mom's friend had donated toothbrushes and toothpaste from home so we handed them out after the presentation and did a hands-on demonstration with the kids.
The kids at the orphanage have a daily schedule that they follow, so we wanted to make sure that this schedule also included 3 minutes of brushing their teeth every morning and night.
After a long afternoon, we managed to have around 55 kids teeth checked. Thank you to Marina, Dr. Enrique, Jesse Pavlov, Gabby and the World Race volunteers in helping me execute this project.
Hasta Luego!
Elly
xo
Elly
xo
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