To me, the Georgia Mission of Mercy is a win-win on many different levels.

First, we are providing a very valuable service to the indigent population of not just Augusta, but also our entire region. This is a service that only dentists can provide, so it is a burden that we must carry ourselves. Second, it is a tremendous public relations opportunity for the Georgia Dental Association and our members. With so much focus in the press on barriers to dental care, the need for adult Medicaid support for dental procedures, and other political issues related to dentistry, this is an opportunity for the GDA to showcase the good works that dentists do every day and not just during a GMOM event. Finally, it is a fantastic opportunity for the Eastern District to interact with members who have not been active in the GDA or EDDS and also to re-engage members who have not been engaged in a while.

You might be surprised to learn that this is my first year participating in GMOM; I didn’t think there would be a place for an orthodontist to help out previously.

However, this year, I became involved through my current position as president of the Eastern District Dental Society, and I’m looking forward to interacting with the many dentists from the Augusta area and from around the state who will come to volunteer. This is a wonderful chance to demonstrate the many reasons to become involved in GDA and the Eastern District. And, of course, now that I see the huge need for volunteers of all kinds, I know that GMOM needs any and all volunteers. Even if you aren’t comfortable with a clinical role, there are plenty of nonclinical roles to be filled by dentists!

No matter your interests or your specialty, we have a job for you! The need for volunteers is immense. We expect to treat approximately 2,000 patients and provide roughly $2,000,000 in donated dental care. We cannot do this alone! Please take a weekend to change a patient’s life for the better!

While many of our supplies are donated, the event is still a very large, very expensive undertaking. We need to raise money to purchase what supplies we are not able to have donated. For every $1 donated, we can perform $8–10 in dental care. That is an excellent bang for your buck!

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The Georgia Dental Association Foundation for Oral Health is pleased to announce our sponsorship of Georgia Mission of Mercy in 2018! GMOM will be held in Augusta, Georgia in the summer of 2018. As a result of this one program, over 1,500 volunteers
donate their time and talent to provide quality dental care to over 2,000 patients in need during this two-day event.

CONTACT Members of the GDA Foundation and GMOM Committee are available to answer your questions and provide more information. Contact Dr. Paul
Trotter (paul.g.trotter@gmail. com), Dr. Jonathan Bullard (jbullard81@gmail.com) or Dr. Richard A. Smith (rasmith10@icloud.com).

PARTICIPATE Consider volunteering your time to provide care or assist with other aspects of the event. Volunteers are vital to the success of GMOM in 2018​; look for information in the spring of 2018 regarding volunteer signup. 

GIVE Your generous contributions will help the GDA Foundation achieve our shared
goals with programs like the upcoming Georgia Mission of Mercy event. Make a gift today at gadental.org/foundation