By Jim Setterberg, D.D.S.
From the Spring 2019 Journal of the Colorado Dental Association
I want to invite you on a mission where you can do a lot of good, extend your trip into a vacation, and not leave Colorado’s state borders (unless you want to for that trip extension).
The Colorado Mission of Mercy (COMOM), for the first time ever, is going to the western slope of Colorado. As a co-site chair along with my wife, Sherrie (RDH), and Dr. Dirk Fleischman, I would like to encourage all of you to come over the hill to our wonderful town of Glenwood Springs for this incredible clinic on Oct. 4-5.
As many of you know, COMOM is a massive portable dental clinic that travels to an area of Colorado each year to provide roughly $1M of donated dental care to those who need it most in our state. Over 125 chairs fill the clinic and over 1,200 volunteers make this clinic possible. That’s where you come in.
Join us. Volunteer for a day (or two or three) and make a difference. And then let my beautiful town make a difference in your life.
Many of you have visited before or have certainly driven past the world’s largest hot springs while travelling I-70. Perhaps it was on your way to Aspen/Snowmass just up the road, or Colorado’s wine country just west in Palisade and Fruita. Maybe you were on the way to Grand Junction for the Tour of the Moon Cycling Classic held in Colorado National Monument, or to Loma to ride the Kokopelli trail all the way to Moab.
A myriad of activities exists on the western slope: rafting, hiking, biking through the canyon, or fishing the Colorado rivers or the Gold Medal water of the Roaring Fork and Frying Pan rivers. Numerous guide services are up and down the valley. Getting above town on the tram to Glenwood Caverns and taking a cave tour should also be on your checklist.
Now, if that hasn’t enticed you to come and spend some extra time in Glenwood, travel west to the desert and Moab or on to Lake Powell. After 37 years in this beautiful valley, I certainly can vouch for all the tremendous experiences and activities that are available within a short distance
What I can also tell you is that the first weekend in October is typically the peak of the color change in the high country. With the brilliant Aspen trees contrasted against the blue Colorado sky, the view will be truly breathtaking.
If you are reading this and have never experienced a COMOM, visit comom.org and watch one of our videos. Our goal is to treat 1,300 patients at this clinic in October.
Wouldn’t you like to be a part of that? We are so happy to be organizing this year’s program and encourage you to be one of the more than 200 dentists needed to bring the western slope dental clinic to fruition.
As oral healthcare providers, we have a unique set of skills that no one else can perform. Let’s use those skills and talents that we have been blessed with to get someone out of pain, give them the ability to chew again, or let them be able to smile in the mirror and not be embarrassed or ashamed. Aren’t those the types of things that make you feel good when you go home at night? …to leave this world just a little bit better. As a bonus, you get to do those things in one of Colorado’s most beautiful locations: Glenwood Springs!
Visit comom.org to learn more about the dental clinic and to register as a volunteer—better yet, register your staff, family and friends! Also encourage your dentist colleagues from out-of-state to join you at the clinic.
And that is your mission if you choose to accept it.
| COMOM 2019 Oct. 4-5 Glenwood Springs, CO |
Questions? Contact Pam Dinkfelt, PhD, at pamcomom@gmail.com or 720-626-9778.
