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 Friday,
February 21 was the American Dental Association's annual
"Give Kids a Smile Day," as well as the date
of the second annual "Dentists with a Heart"
program. This year, 87 dentist offices throughout Santa
Clara County, Calif. provided no-cost dental services
to nearly 600 children in need. PRASAD Children Dental
Health Program's mobile dental clinic parked on a bustling,
populous street, where it saw 35 new patients who ranged
in age from four months to 17 years old. There was such
a high demand for dental services aboard the mobile clinic
that the staff made a waiting list of 30 additional patients
who could be seen during the following days.
Jyoti Kehl, daughter of Laurie Kehl,
the administrator of the California dental program,
dressed up as Elliott T. Sparkle and danced and waved
at the cars and trucks that passed the clinic. She reported
receiving 53 friendly honks from cars and even a city
bus, as well as innumerable smiles and waves from children
and parents alike. Everyone who walked by on the street
received a toothbrush, and all the children who came
to the clinic that day received toothbrushes, paste,
floss, and an Elliott T. Sparkle Coloring and Activity
Book. The Mayfair Improvement Initiative provided an
incredible outreach effort to families in the area and
offered them insurance enrollment assistance. The Mexican
Heritage Plaza made their parking lot available for
the event, and the Foothill College School of Dental
Hygiene provided a student hygienist volunteer to assist
on the clinic. The Children's Dental Health Program
does provides these services at no cost each and every
day, yet this special event was a wonderful celebration
of the love and care for children and their families
that is PRASAD.
Click here to read more about
PRASAD
Children's Dental Health Program.
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On
Sunday, February 9, 2003, at the Flamingo Hotel Ballroom
in Santa Rosa, Calif., Drs. Robert Anderson and Gary Barth
hosted a reception to thank the patients and staff of
the Eye Care Institute who contributed to the sponsorship
of the April 2003 Cataract Eye Camp. More than 100 people
attended and listened to the doctors' description of their
experience assisting with Prasad Chikitsa's November 2002
eye camp in India. Each donor wore a name badge displaying
a photograph of a cataract patient, so that everyone could
see the faces of the eye camp beneficiaries.
Dr. Barth and Dr. Anderson explained the history of
Prasad Chikitsa's eye care program, the evolution from
several large eye camps to a permanent facility with
regular, smaller-scale eye camps. Dr. Barth emphasized
how the Netraprakash Eye Clinic is positioned to become
self-sufficient. Its operating model generates income
from private patients and provides free services during
monthly charity surgery camps. Dr. Barth also told the
attendees that with a bigger space and improved transportation
and housing, the eye clinic could make more money and
thus reduce the need for donations. He encouraged them
to support the vision of Dr. Tulika Kar, the staff ophthalmologist,
for a small clinic-style hospital which continues to
conduct monthly charity camps while attracting paying
eye patients from throughout the Tansa region.
In addition to providing a venue to acknowledge donors,
tell stories and show pictures from the eye camp, the
reception also raised thousands of additional dollars
to support the eye program. People were impressed by
the achievements of the program and the manner in which
service is provided, and were moved to help it flourish
and restore sight to even more people.
Click here to read about the November
India eye camp and Dr.
Tulika Kar.
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