Finding Our Voices has received $10,000 for its new statewide program called “Finding Our Smiles” of free, dignified dental care for Maine women and child victims of domestic abuse. 

 

The grant from the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation will help the grassroots, survivor-powered nonprofit keep up with the momentum of “Finding Our Smiles.”  Since the launch of this program six months ago, 18 dentists across Maine including oral surgeons and orthodontists have signed on to provide pro bono dental procedures. Two dental labs, Port City out of Windham and NDX H&O out of Manchester, New Hampshire, are also participating. Nine Maine survivors so far have had their smiles restored or are well along the multi-stage process toward this happy outcome. 

 

Finding Our Voices president/founder Patrisha McLean said, “I have been blown away by the generosity and kindness of the Maine dental community in embracing Finding Our Smiles.  Dental providers are donating huge chunks of precious office time and thousands of dollars worth of treatment, and often they thank us for the opportunity to provide this life-altering gift to Maine’s domestic abuse survivors. 

 

"The Elmina B. Sewall grant,” McLean added, "is exactly what we need to continue to keep Finding Our Smiles organized and provide transportation to appointments for clients when needed. I am so grateful to this prestigious organization as well as the top-notch dentists in our program for prioritizing domestic abuse survivors and validating our groundbreaking, survivor-powered efforts."

 

Finding Our Smiles provides cosmetic as well as critical care, and fixes dental problems stemming from neglect due to emotional abuse AKA coercive control as well as from physical violence.

 

Dr. Rebecca Laliberte fixed the front tooth of a young woman named Amber that was chipped from a punch in the face.  Dr. David Pier rebuilt the teeth of Alexandra that had rotted due to her “not being allowed” to brush them.  According to McLean, every time the mother of four started to brush her teeth, her (now ex) husband would accuse her of  "wanting to make yourself beautiful for your boyfriend.” Because the taunts would sometimes escalate to strangulation,  it was safer for her to not brush them.  With her smile back to how it was before she got pulled into domestic abuse at the age of 15,  Alexandra said she no longer hides away in embarrassment and shame.  “I get compliments all the time, I have a job I am proud of, I am a member of society again.”

 

Participating dental providers get domestic abuse survivors in quickly for treatment despite their jam-packed schedules, and provide the caliber of work, in the words of Dr. Sarah Bouchard, “that I would want if I was in the chair myself.”  This includes porcelain veneers which last longer than less expensive alternatives and also when it is possible to do this, rebuilding the woman’s existing teeth as an alternative to extractions and dentures.  

 

In June, the Maine Dental Association provided Finding Our Voices with free, front and center exhibit space at their annual convention in Bar Harbor toward the nonprofit’s goal of dental partners in every region in Maine.

 

MDA President Elect Dr. Shanna Gagnon gave the Finding Our Smiles client, A.,  seven fillings and fixed her broken front tooth. The Farmingdale dentist will also be providing “A" with a cleaning at her upcoming fourth pro bono appointment.  A. said she was prevented for years from seeking dental care by her abusive ex-husband.  “Dr. Gagnon and her staff are amazing,” she said. "First experience in my life of X-rays without pain and her injections are so gentle I couldn’t even tell she was doing them. I can eat without pain and that’s something I didn’t know I would ever be able to do.”

 

The Augusta-based oral surgeon Dr. Rob Berube turbo-charged the program this winter along with Dr. Pier by introducing McLean at dental society gatherings. He said, “Providing safe and healthy pathways forward for women of domestic abuse, Patrisha and her staff move mountains to create successful outcomes. I would like to thank my colleagues for participating with Finding Our Voices and would encourage others to contact them to offer help with this critically important organization.”

 

Finding Our Voices is best known for posters featuring photo portraits of 45 named Maine survivors including an incarcerated woman and Governor Janet T. Mills in business windows, bathrooms, and changing rooms in 90 towns across the state. Finding Our Smiles is one of the group’s many peer-to-peer support programs which include a fund to empower women to get out and stay out of danger at home and another bringing joy and comfort to children traumatized by domestic violence. For more information visit https://findingourvoices.net/