Teachers from the different towns in the 5th District of Negros Occidental are one step closer to regaining their smiles after members of the Philippine Dental Association Negros Occidental chapter took impressions for their dentures offered free, through the “Project Smile: Ibalik ang Yuhom ni Titser” of the Rotary Club of Bacolod Central and Rep. Emilio Yulo III.
For the initial step of the program, the teachers gathered at the 5th District Congressional Office in Isabela town Sunday for evaluation and assessment by the dentists, led by PDA-NOC president Dr. Analie Gonzaga.
The RCB-Central, PDA-NOC and Yulo entered a partnership last September to provide free dentures to 100 public school teachers in the district. Yulo will provide for the financial and logistical needs of the project, while the dentists offered their services. RCB-Central takes charge of the project administration.
Gonzaga told the teachers that the association is proud to be part bringing their smiles back and lauded Dr. Carlos Legislador who initiated the partnership with RCB-Central. He said most of the teachers he interviewed confided that their dental health had to take a back seat because there are more things that needed to be prioritized.
That is a sad reality, Yulo said, adding that he is grateful for the project because it will not only bring back their smiles but will bolster their self-confidence as well. He also said that as soon as the teachers get their dentures, they will also become advocates of dental health.
Meanwhile, RCB-Central president Rolem Basiya said Project Smile is just one of the club’s legacy projects aimed to empower lives and communities as a whole.
Project Smile was first launched in 2017 with 20 teacher-beneficiaries from Handumanan National High School and Elementary School.*
