Adieu Saipan

I’m terrible at goodbyes.

Amy, what would I have done without you?!

So I’ll keep this short and tell you how you guys were the BEST part of my every day. Thank you for your friendship and the memories. I’ll never forget the laughter and happiness you brought to my life. Here are a couple pictures of my last week in Saipan.

My Saipan Family

My scuba buddy, Harry! Thanks for coming to the airport to see me off.

The SDA Dental Clinic had a farewell party for me. A favorite patient baked me a yummy Apple Coffee Crumb cake!


My daily sunshine at work! I'll miss Mark and Tammy James. Thank you for throwing me a farewell party at your house! I will also miss Aunt Judy and Uncle Dennis for teaching me how to scuba dive. You introduced a whole new world to me and now I'm ADDICTED!

Ken and Crystal gave me a beautiful lei from Chuk! I have had the time of my life and I'm so glad I got to spend it with them. They were my spiritual mentors in Saipan and have encouraged me to follow my passion and dreams. I'll miss you guys!

My good friends, John Dax and Mai. Always there to listen to me Rant about everything! There's Noah squeezing his cute face in the pic.

Lunch at 360 with Angelo. Thanks for the laughs!

If you have ever read the book Eat Pray Love you’ll understand me when I say that living and working in Saipan was my “India” experience. I came to Saipan on a quest for personal and spiritual growth and left with so much more. This journey changed my life. My heart has awakened and my soul is at ease.

This picture pretty much describes my experience in Saipan: A blast!

My beautiful friends.

And now I’m ready to grab life by its two horns. I hope you will continue to enjoy the ride with me. I’ll keep the same blog address but there will be some changes in the next couple of weeks. I’m still trying to come up with a new title. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Scott and Atsuko Eck baked me this yummy choco brownie cake! Thank you!

What’s Bubbles’ next adventure? Scuba diving and searching for Whale Sharks in Belize this June! Greg found this one just recently in Belize. I hope they come out when I get there. Stay tuned Neh !!!=)

Whale Sharkey! Picture taken by Greg Moretti.

My One-Year Anniversary In Saipan

Break ups can actually be good for you. Once you get over the initial nausea and heartache, breakups actually force you to reevaluate everything in your life. Some people react by cutting their hair, joining a gym to get back in shape, changing the focus of their career, or even relocating to a new area. I think its pretty much safe to say that I ended up doing all of that.

I can’t believe that I’ve been out here for a year. Its all kind of a blur to me since my first year flew by so fast. I remember arriving at 1:20 in the morning a year ago not knowing who was picking me up and where I was going to stay. I was kind of scared but excited at the same time.

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I’d ever end up in Saipan. I was living the Orange County lifestyle before I moved out here. My dream apartment was only ten minutes from Laguna Beach. I had the perfect job at a Periodontal and Implant Dental office. I had my family and friends close by. Somehow the busyness of life in Southern California comforted me. But making good money, having all the material things, and job security didn’t satisfy me. My heart was longing for something more.

When I made the decision to leave the states to do dental mission work, I applied at different SDA Dental Clinics all over the world like in Thailand, Japan, Philippines, and Guam. Saipan wasn’t even a thought. In fact, I never really heard about Saipan until my Dental Hygiene instructor brought up a job opening to me. The first person I heard back from was Dr. Ken Pierson. When Dr. Ken Pierson initially offered me the job at the Saipan SDA Clinic it was for a two-year contract. I declined and said I would only come out for a year. I didn’t think I could last being away from my family for that long. I wasn’t willing to give up more than a year of my life.

Funny how much you grow and change when you are away from everything that is comfortable and familiar to you. In the past year I have realized what a blessing it is in following God’s path instead of forcing my own path. His plans were far better than anything I could ever imagine. When I look back I realize that God really opened doors for me to be here. He’s so real in my life. I think He just knew that this was what I needed to bring me closer to Him.

I’ve decided I need a theme for this year. Matthew 14:22-32 was the bible verse that helped me make the decision to leave everything behind and to follow God. It’s the verse when Jesus met his disciples that were in a boat on a lake during a storm. Peter walked onto the water to meet Jesus. The story tells of the strengths and weakness of Peter’s faith. His faith and trust in Jesus allowed him to walk on water! I know that Peter eventually began to sink when he took his eyes off of Jesus but can you imagine really walking on water? I believe that having faith alone is not enough. That exercising your faith is what really counts. That’s the kind of faith I am striving for this year.

So even though I could have gone back after this year I decided to stay. Honestly I don't know why God wants me to stay another year. I just know in my heart that He wants me here. I Just need to stop trying to understand things and just trust Him no matter what. Never again would I compromise Him for anybody or anything.

So here I go with another year in Saipan. I’m so happy to be here.

Improving Access to Dental Care in Saipan

We didn't have to talk about money or what their insurance co-payment was. We were just there to get people out of pain and discomfort. We came together as a team and shared the same heart as Jesus: to serve others.
I feel like this is what I came here to do. To be able to provide dental treatment to those who really need it.
Ever heard of someone who lived with a toothache for more than a year? On Sunday we saw plenty of patients who put up with pain for over a year due to financial restraints or lack of insurance to visit their dentist. We saw 66 patients and did over 80 dental procedures. Dr. Crystal Edmister and Dr. Ken Pierson extracted over forty teeth as well as other dental procedures like fillings. The other registered dental hygienist, Lori and I did a bunch of gross debridements on patients who hadn't seen the dentist in over 10 years. We provided over $10,000 worth of dental procedures. I think it was a success. Here's an article about our event in the Saipan Tribune news.

But still the sad fact is 40 percent of the population in the U.S. is not getting the dental care they need. I read the Surgeon General's Report 2000, Oral Health In America, and it called untreated poor health the "silent x-factor promoting the onset of life-threatening diseases which are responsible for the deaths of millions of Americans each year." Its a serious matter and unfortunately it doesn't get as much attention as it should.
Access to dental care is limited. I've seen it on my dental mission trips not only in Saipan but in other countries like the Philippines and Mexico.
Its hard because coming out of dental hygiene school you want to go out and make a difference. Now that I am out here I am realizing how great the epidemic is and how short handed we are. So, I guess I can only do what I can . . . save one mouth at a time.
Photo Credit: the Pierson's and Kuya Ernie

"Good Morning Miss Bev"

Feb. is National Children's Dental Month and the SDA Dental Clinic is offering free dental exams for children valued at $70. Part of my job out here is to teach good oral hygiene and caries preventiion at the local elementary schools twice a month. Yesterday the other registered dental hygienist on island, Lori, and I taught two third grade classes at Garapan Elementary School. Marconi came and made a report about our visit to the classrooms. You can read more about it in the Saipan Tribune News today here.

I have to admit that up until yesterday I only liked teaching adults. Thus that is why I have been teaching the elderly at the Manamko House for the past month. But after my experience yesterday, I have had a change of heart about teaching kids. I guess there is just something about 25 kids enthusiatically saying "good morning Miss Bev" that lifts my spirit=)

We started off our presentations with a short story about the importance of teeth. Lori is a great story teller by the way. After the story we had a question and answer session. You'd be amazed what kids would do for stickers. During the presentations we had two volunteers come up and gave them some red tablets to chew. After chewing the red tablets we had them smile and show their classmates what plaque looks like. It was funny to see the kids reactions all in sync saying, "ewwww, gross!"

I worried about classroom management, kids glazing over of boredom . . . but after yesterday I realized its just all about having fun.

10 Lies of A Dental Hygienist

1. I’m not the brutal one ;)
2. Relax. You won’t even know I’m here.
3. Some patients fall asleep in my chair.
4. This new flavor of fluoride tastes much better. (fluoride makes me gag)
5. I’ll have you out of here in no time.
6. I’m not obsessive compulsive!
7. Flossing gets easier with practice. (yeah right)
8. If it hurts, hold up your left hand and I’ll stop. (No I won’t, you better not move!)
9. That wasn’t so bad was it? (heh)
10. I haven’t lost a patient yet.

Okay, maybe only my RDH friends will truly understand these “sayings”. I laugh because most of these I say throughout the day. I must be lying all day. But no seriously! If you live in Saipan and you need a thorough teeth cleaning . . . book an appointment with me at SDA Dental clinic!!!! Just ask Steve. He can vouch for me=)