GSDM Shows Its Holiday Spirit at the 2016 Christmas in the City
On Sunday, December 18, 2016, 41 members of the Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (GSDM) community volunteered at the annual Christmas in the City event at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. This was the 28th annual holiday fete, which began as a small event for mothers and children in Boston area homeless shelters, but has now grown to over 5,000 attendees with 3,000 volunteers.
This year’s Christmas in the City event featured a banquet, live entertainment, Santa, a Winter Wonderland with games, rides, a petting zoo, and kid friendly activities. Additionally, each child received a personalized gift from Santa that they wished for. Some GSDM volunteers went the extra mile and dressed up as the Tooth Fairy and Captain Cavity.
More than 300 children visited the GSDM area, where our volunteers helped children and/or their parents learn about the importance of baby teeth and how to keep them healthy. 37 children and three young parents received dental screenings, a service not so readily available to many of the people in attendance.
“It is an honor and a privilege to be part of Christmas in the City (CITC), an amazing and magical holiday event that brings smiles, happiness and resources to thousands of Boston area children that are living day-to-day with the stress and insecurity of homelessness and poverty. More than 3,000 volunteers make this effort possible,” said Ms. Kathy Lituri, Clinical Instructor in the Department of Health Policy & Health Services Research and Oral Health Promotion Director.
“Participating in CITC is one of those events that tugs on one’s heartstrings in numerous ways. In addition to promoting oral health and providing dental screenings, I am confident that this experience offers the GSDM volunteers with a wide range of personal and professional rewards, a better understanding of homelessness, more knowledge of local resources, and the realization that every volunteer counts and that their efforts truly make a difference.”
Photos from Christmas in the City can be found on Facebook.
Student Volunteers
Caroline Adams DMD 18, Naveen Admala AS DMD 18, Shilpa Admala AS DMD 18, Zohaib Ahmed AS DMD 18, Padideh Alizadeh AS DMD 18, Alexandra Fili DMD 19, Christian Ford DMD 20, Tamanna Gandhi DMD 18, Kerin Gustafson DMD 20, Valerie Lascala DMD 18 David B. Levy DMD 20, Sasha Manchanda DMD 18, Faraz Nabi Memon AS DMD 18, Daniel Nayebi DMD 20, Jordan Nosis DMD 20, Jayesh Patel DMD 18, Arya Pathak AS DMD 18, Luis Perez DMD 18, Alina Ploaie DMD 20, Steve Prieve DMD 18, Azadeh Sajjadi DMD 18, Sofyan Sayfo AS DMD 17, and Christopher Unger DMD 17
Faculty Volunteers
Dr. Pelly Chang, Dr. Samira Sheikh, Dr. Steven Karpas, Dr. Lina Benslimane, Dr. Elizabeth Whitney, Dr. Ana Zea, and Dr. Martin Ugarte-Chavez, Dr. Mohammad Mourad, and Ms. Kathy Lituri.
Staff Volunteers
Dr. Moaz Zanbarakji
Other GSDM Volunteers
Nicholas Canal, Juanita Canal, Dolores LaScala, Deepika Mankotia, Patricia Nunez-Salas, Emily Pipilas, Juan Luis Ugarte-Nunez, and Rafaela Ugarte-Nunez.