PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — The dentist is probably not some people’s favorite place to visit, especially kids. Still, the Rays Baseball Foundation teamed up with other organizations to replace fear with fun and give kids access to dental care.
Tropicana Field looked less like a ballpark on Friday and more like a dentist’s office. Dr. Deborah Lowry was one of the volunteers who served kids in St. Pete through a dental clinic.
“Extractions, fillings, whatever the kids need,” said Dr. Lowry.
It was all in collaboration with TeamSmile, United Concordia Dental, and the Rays Baseball Foundation.
This was the third time Dr. Lowry volunteered at TeamSmile.
"In St. Petersburg, there's a lot of lack of access to care, and I used to go on mission trips to Guatemala and Dominican Republic, but then I decided why not just spend the time in our own community,” said Lowry.
John McCarthy, Executive Director of TeamSmile, said the core of what they do is provide free dental care and oral health education, but they want kids to be excited and have fun.
"It’s so important to get them on the right track while they’re young with their oral health, both their education and taking care overall of their teeth,” said McCarthy. “We realize that overall oral health care is linked to diabetes, is linked to heart health, and your overall health, so if children understand that at 5, 6, 7 years old, they're much more likely to take care of their teeth, and therefore, have a more healthy lifestyle when they grow up.”
Amidst the music, fun on the field, and comfort in the form of stuffed animals, kids braved the big dentist’s chairs, including 5-year-old Seliya.
"They showed me my teeth that they're going to clean,” said Seliya.
Staff expected to serve about 200 children.
