Aspen Dental in Naples gives Southwest Florida veterans a day of free care
Ashley CollinsThe doors of Aspen Dental in Naples opened Saturday for veterans of all ages in need of care.
The site off Pine Ridge Road was just one of almost 450 Aspen Dental offices nationwide that offered free cleanings, fillings, extractions and denture repairs Saturday to more than 6,000 veterans. The care was offered as part of the annual Healthy Mouth Movement, an initiative launched by Aspen Dental in 2014.
Vietnam War veteran Ken Hulme, 69, was one of the many Southwest Florida veterans who visited the Naples office between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.
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The Fort Myers resident drove down to Naples after learning the Aspen Dental location near him was booked solid for the day.
Hulme said he hadn't had a proper cleaning in years. He was in good spirits and joked with the staff despite the fact that he needed one bottom tooth pulled and all his top teeth removed. The staff fabricated dentures for him that day.
Hulme receives certain benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, but dental care isn't one of them. That benefit is offered only to veterans considered 100 percent disabled or with a service-related injury to the mouth, according to Aspen Dental.
Hulme served as a combat photographer for the Air Force from 1969 to 1972.
"I was a technical writer working for start-up companies (afterward), so I didn't get any insurance," he said. "Now, I'm retired with social insecurity. I make just over $1,000 a month and $200 compensation for being exposed with Agent Orange."
Since the start of the Healthy Mouth Movement, more than 12,000 patients have received free dental care, resulting in more than $7.6 million donated dental services, according to Aspen Dental.
"We're treating whatever we can treat the same day," said Brent Rigor, office manager at Aspen Dental in Naples. "(The veterans) come in and we'll ask them what is bothering them and treat them. ... These veterans haven't been to the dentist because of money."
Rigor calculated Hulme's dental care treatment would cost $4,000 to $5,000 normally.
A couple of rooms down from Hulme, Michael Brizzo, 31, an Iraq War veteran, needed only a tooth pulled.
"A month ago, the pain woke me up, and so I researched about it and found out about the (Healthy Mouth Movement) online," the Cape Coral resident said.
Brizzo has gone through much worse. Three of his fingers were amputated after an improvised explosive device exploded near him while he was serving in the Army in Iraq between 2007 and 2009.
But he said he's lucky to be alive.
Aspen Dental in Naples plans to go a step further and adopt one of Saturday's patients to offer him or her a free comprehensive treatment plan for the rest of the year, Rigor said.