Before Friday, when David Allison was in need of having a tooth pulled, he would bear down and do it himself with his hands.

“When you get to that last nerve, the pain is unreal,” said Allison, a 58-year-old Waco construction worker.

After waiting in line at the Health and Physical Education Building at McLennan Community College for 13 hours Thursday night and Friday morning, the sparse-toothed Allison had 10 more teeth pulled — free of charge and with much less pain.

Dr. Dale Williams (right) works on Dawn Greer, who arrived at 2 a.m. Friday for free dental work at MCC.
Rod Aydelotte/Tribune-Herald

He was one of the hundreds suffering from dental problems who received free treatment Friday in an event sponsored by the Texas Dental Association’s Smiles Foundation.

The event continues at 6:30 a.m. today.

With the help of about 60 dentists from around the state, the goal is to treat 1,000 to 1,200 people, organizers said.

About 400 were helped as of Friday afternoon, with another 300 already registered and waiting for care, said Debbie McElveen, one of the event’s local coordinators.

While she said she hopes no one in need of treatment is turned away, she said she can not make any guarantees for those who show up today.

“This is so fulfilling for us,” said Carol Woods, development chairwoman for the Smiles Foundation. “Ninety-eight percent of these people waiting are in a lot of pain. Most of them have never even had their teeth cleaned.”

Those in need opened wide in 40 portable dental chairs that were set up in the facility’s indoor basketball court.

Smells were of mint and sanitizers.

Sounds were of persistent dental drills and the gurgling of the vacuum-like saliva suckers.

Some of the patients were in their 80s. Others, as young as 6 years old.

There were musicians and housewives and store clerks.

They were herded in the heat from an MCC building, where pre-screening was held to the bleachers in the main gym, to another pre-screening area and, finally, the dental chair.

All were operating on little to no sleep. But there was no complaining.

“People really appreciate this,” said 52-year-old Charles Harris, a Marlin carpentry worker. “Without those people, I would be in pain.”

Harris had his wisdom teeth removed.

As the drummer for the modern rock band Ember, Dusty Saxton, 24, a Lorena native, doesn’t have dental insurance.

Last week, he put out a desperate plea on his Facebook page, asking whether anyone knows a dentist, is a dentist, is married to a dentist or in any way related to a dentist.

Facebook friends filled him in on the event.

“I’ve been here since 10:30 last night, had no sleep, and when I leave here I have to drive to Houston for a show tonight,” Saxton said. “So, I’ll be drumming while recovering from dental work.”

Amanda Winslett, a 31-year-old part-time health food store clerk, went without sleep and drove to the event from Austin.

She hasn’t had insurance since she was pregnant with her 7-year-old son and can’t afford to repair the painful hole in one of her teeth.

“I’m so thankful for this treatment,” she said. “I don’t know what I would have done otherwise.”

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