Two Delta Dental of Arkansas executives and three corporate board members are among the volunteer dentists who will provide free dental treatments to eligible veterans as part of the state’s inaugural Operation Stand Down on Veterans Day, Nov. 10.
Offered for the first time in Arkansas, Operation Stand Down was launched in 2012 by Dr. Daniel Fridh of La Porte, Ind. A practicing dentist and Air Force veteran, he sought to devise a scalable solution to the poor oral health he observed among many fellow service members and their families. He began offering a designated day of free dental care to his ex-military patients and encouraged fellow dentists to do likewise. Since then, Operation Stand Down has grown into a multi-state project.
In Arkansas, Operation Stand Down will be hosted on November 10, Veteran’s Day, by the Arkansas International College of Dentistry and coordinated by the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs at six locations: Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Jonesboro, Little Rock, Pine Bluff and Arkadelphia. Among the participating volunteer dentists will be
- Thomas Redd, DDS, MS, VP, Professional Relations, Delta Dental of Arkansas
- Niki Carter, DMD, MPH, Dental Director & Manager, Professional Relations, Delta Dental of Arkansas
- Mark Bailey, DDS, of Waldron, board member, Delta Dental of Arkansas
- Troy Bartels, DDS, of Jonesboro, board member, Delta Dental of Arkansas
- Ned Alley, DDS, of Little Rock, board member, DD of Arkansas
- Drs. Bailey, Bartels and Alley have donated their clinics as sites.
To receive treatment, veterans must present discharge papers or a DD214 and preregister by contacting Gina Chandler of the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs at gina.chandler@arkansas.gov or 501-682-6487.
About Delta Dental of Arkansas
The company is the largest dental benefits provider in the state, helping more than 800,000 Arkansans keep their smiles healthy through commercial and Medicaid coverage.
As a not-for-profit company, Delta Dental is committed to improving the oral health of Arkansans through the philanthropic efforts of its Foundation, which donated more than $3 million to support oral health education initiatives in the last three years.
For more information, visit www.deltadentalar.com.
