COMMUNITY NEWS
Dientes Relaunches Radcliff Outreach A bout 30% of Santa County children age 3-9 did not go to the dentist in 2018, according to the Oral Health Access Santa Cruz County 2021 Report Card. That is something the nonprofit, Dientes, aims to change along with Salud Para le Gente, a nonprofit that provide health and dental care in South County. Dental decay is one of the most common chronic childhood diseases. In fact, children with poor oral health are three times more likely to miss school because of dental pain. With schools back in session, Dientes is working to eliminate barriers to care—such as transportation—by bringing preventative services to local schools.
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The outreach program offers oral health evaluations on-site, including x-rays, and procedures such as cleanings, topical fluoride application, and sealants. For many students seen through the program, this will be their first visit to the dentist. On Sept. 10, Dientes staff saw 23 children at Radcliff Elementary, the first of 15 schools where Dientes is providing preventative care as part of their outreach program.
“There are thousands of children in our community living in poverty who don’t have access to high quality, affordable dental care,” said Dientes CEO Laura Marcus. “Our goal is to make prevention more common than treatment by ensuring all children have a regular, ongoing source of dental care and understand the importance of taking care of their teeth.” Last spring, due to the pandemic, Dientes modified its program by providing care outdoors to 55 children at four schools. With the return of in-person instruction, the goal is to serve more students by offering indoor care and following COVID-19 safety protocols. n
Abby, a 5th grader at Radcliff School, pauses for a photo after a good checkup.
Volunteer Center Launching Civic Life Zoom Series
he Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County, founded in 1967, is one of 10 organizations nationwide selected for a grant from the Points of Light Foundation for a pilot program to inspire and activate all generations of residents to act for good. Volunteer Center’s program will feature nine Civic Life Town Hall events, on Zoom or in person, depending on safety issues. The events began October 6 on Zoom. In 2020, Points of Light Foundation studied how to convert good intentions into positive action, finding a “Civic Circle” to key to an individual doing good in the community (ranging from volunteering and donating to social media sharing,
learning about a cause, making thoughtful purchasing decisions, and voting.) The grant will enable Volunteer Center to host nine 90-minute sessions that will enable participants to learn, connect and act on each person’s power to influence their civic life and take action to support causes they care about. Panel members who are local activists or experts in each theme area will share their knowledge and experience to inform and inspire participants to act. “There is a growing movement of people who want to be constructive, engaged and create meaningful change in our community and our world. This transformation is happening in spite of,
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or perhaps inspired by the fact that our community and our world feel fractured as we struggle to face huge problems like public health, affordable housing and income inequality, as well as generational issues like climate change, racism and the rise of anti-democratic governance,” said Karen Delaney, executive director of Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County. “We are excited for this opportunity to build a growing community of people, businesses and groups connected for good.” The Town Hall events are taking place from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Participants will receive a guide to explore the topic beforehand, participate in facilitated breakout discussions focused on learning and action, and, following the session, each person will receive information about opportunities for engagement. The theme of the first event on Zoom was “Voice,” highlighting ways to effectively
advocate for a cause. Panel members included Don Lane, housing activist, former Santa Cruz mayor and City Council person; Nallely Martinez, arts and cultural activist for Arts Council of Santa Cruz County; and Adam Spickler, diversity activist, Cabrillo College Trustee, first openly trans elected official in Santa Cruz County. Future dates and topics via Zoom include: • Oct. 27: Service (local, national, international panelists) • Nov. 17:Donate (donations that make a difference) • Dec. 27: Purchase power (how to make decisions to affect good) Next year town halls may be in person or via Zoom; a decision will depend on COVID safety guidelines. 2022 Topics are: • Feb. 9: Work (employers who give back) “Civic Life” page 30
