{ outreach in action } 

Vacation with a Purpose Pack your bags and plan your summer vacation for MOMOM 2015

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on’t you just love summer? Per- haps you are reading this issue of the Focus outside on your porch while you sip on some sweet tea, lemonade or other cold beverage. There are so many iconic images connected to happi- ness in the summer—baseball games, the beach, fireworks, picnics and perhaps best of all—family vacation.

Sure, travel and family time look different now than 40 years ago when you piled into the wood-paneled station wagon and headed off to Wally World, but nonetheless there’s still nothing like hitting the road for shared adventures. The memories last forever.

Here’s a radical suggestion: Take a brief vacation with your office family this summer at the Missouri Mission of Mercy (MOMOM). You can all pile into an old station wagon and road trip to Columbia on Friday July 31 and Saturday August 1 for the fourth annual MOMOM clinic.

Not only will you be instrumental in helping close to 2,000 needy patients receive pain relief and get basic dental care they haven’t been able to access anywhere else, you also will build memories with your staff as you join hundreds of other volunteers for the largest, free dental clinic in the state.

The MOMOM atmosphere is unique from other charity dental clinics due to its scope. From the moment you drive up and see the winding line of patients who have camped

24 focus | MAY/JUN 2015 | ISSUE 3

out overnight because they really need this care, to the moment you sit down with your new best buds after a tiring shift, you will feel good about your choice to go above and beyond and put MOMOM on your calendar. Whether you see old friends or meet new

I see local community businesses and organizations care for their own and fund the clinic. I see vendors go an extra mile and donate supplies and time to make the clinic flourish. I answer emails and calls from perspective patients who are so excited about the opportunity for help that they would line up today if possible. I see the local host team sacrifice hours of time to organize, chase down contacts and rally others. I see the media’s interest in such a big story of compassion. I see the conversations that are started and advanced when legislators see the clinic and the need firsthand. I see the facility staff grow in under- standing and awe as they work with us to accommodate this massive undertaking. I see the repeat volunteers eagerly sign up again like they were going to summer camp. And mostly I see smiles as all this comes together in one wild weekend.

Have you seen it? Will this be your year? C’mon, pack your

faces, you will remember the satisfaction of working with a big team to collectively accomplish something amazing. I dare say it might challenge your regularly scheduled vacation for title of “best memory from Sum- mer 2015”.

It’s no surprise to find me persuading you about MOMOM. I spend a lot of time work- ing on it. But that also gives me a unique perspective on why this is so special and so important.

bags and plan your summer vacation for MO- MOM 2015. You won’t regret it. f

CONTACT PAUL ROBERTS at the MDA for questions about MOMOM or other outreach and foundation-related programs at paul@modentalmail.org. And, make sure to follow Paul and his travels and adventures on the MDA blog at www.modental.org/blog.