Dental Care for 235 orphans in Armenia

"Smiling Teeth, Smiling Child"          

 SOAR DENTAL CLINIC   

Gyumri, Ani District & OLA Tsaghgadzor Summer Camp

Providing quality dental care to the institutionalized and otherwise underprivileged children is at the heart of SOAR’s dental campaign.

In the footsteps of inspiring acts of advocacy and giving, let's make our lives meaningful by making a greater impact on the lives of others.

SOAR Dental Clinic in Gyumri, fully operational, staffed with permanent staff and volunteers are serving the children of Gyumri!

 Submitted by Kohar Mardirossian Pelter and George Yacoubian Jr. -Project leaders 

In 2015, after an in-depth research, SOAR recognized the overwhelming and prevalent conditions of severe poverty and lack of any dental care in Gyumri and other remote regions of Armenia. Malnourishment, poor social conditions, genetic factors affecting child development and stress can cause issues with the development of teeth and bone, all of which is prevalent in this region. SOAR began building a Dental Clinic on the premises of Our Lady of Armenia Center, to provide free dental care to all of Gyumri. Thanks to GlobalGiving Campaigns and its kind supporters, that dream came true in March of 2016. The dental clinic has been providing consultations, fillings, removal of tarter, treatment of cavities through the infiltration method, as well as the removal and treatment with orthodontics free of charge and open to the public since its start. 

Visiting dentists who have volunteered at the clinic, offered the children the chance to have all the dental treatment they need – including cleanings, x-rays and filling (for cavities), provision of vitamins and supplements necessary for gum and enamel health. However, with the increased number of children and families seeking to receive treatments at the clinic, there has been the overwhelming need for a permanent dentist to provide professional services at the clinic. 

We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Lora Amatuni has joined SOAR Dental Clinic. She is specialized in pediatrics dentistry and has worked at several dental polyclinics. In addition, SOAR has been able to staff the clinic with auxiliary dental care personnel, assistants and support staff. SOAR's current dental team constitutes of Dr. Lora Amatuni, dental assistant - Emma Hakobyan, administrative assistant - Tatev Tumasyan, volunteer and dental student -Satenik Sargsyan. 

Since March 2018, SOAR Gyumri Dental Clinic at the Our Lady of Armenia Center, has provided services to 90 children from neighboring orphanages, day care and boarding facilities. Many families from the community in need of dental are registering on a monthly basis. The dental clinic staff is also conducting seminars to educate and provide preventative measures for proper dental treatment and protection of teeth in different communities and facilities. Seminars have already been scheduled at 3 day care centers where kids attend from disadvantaged communities and vulnerable families. During the seminars, dental care products such as brushes and toothpaste are going to be handed out to the children to help them achieve continued dental hygiene.

Concurrently, SOAR Dental Clinic at the Our Lady of Armenia (OLA) Summer Camp in the mountains of Tsaghgadzor, will host 800 children from different orphanages of Armenia in June of 2018. SOAR Dental Care Program" was extended to the summer camp in 2016 where each year children are gathered from the orphanages, the poorest villages and regions of Armenia, the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) and Southern Georgia (Javakh) to receive adequate nutrition, hygiene, medicine and medical exams (including vaccinations), summer recreational activities, rest and especially dental care.   These children will have an opportunity to receive dental care support at the camp. This year, SOAR board member and volunteer Dr. Ross Norian will visit camp in the summer and provide dental services to the kids.

This makes the role of "SOAR Dental Care Program" in Tsaghgadzor and Gyumri very crucial for the most disadvantaged children and families in these communities! To continue our efforts in reaching out to the poor and the orphaned children, WE NEED YOUR HELP! You can help make a difference and change the course of this endemic crisis! The funds will be used to obtain equipment, materials and other much needed operational items.

Your past support has made it possible for Armenia’s orphans and elderly to receive regular, oral health screenings and treatment by qualified dental health professionals. You made it possible to build and operate the dental clinics in Gyumri, Tsaghgadzor, and remote regions of Armenia! 

We are grateful for generous donors like you. No amount is too small. Imagine what your continued support can bring to the poorest populations in Armenia! Give what you can to relieve pain and suffering and to foster a smile on the faces of the less fortunate! 

Together, we are making a difference! Your tax-deductible donations are accepted through the Global Giving Dental Care Campaign for Orphans (https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/dental-care-clinics-for-orphans-in-armenia)