Mother of three grateful for back to school fair
TASHA SHIRLEY, a mother of three from Woodford Park in Kingston, was among 500 residents in South East St Andrew, who were recently beaming with gratitude after benefiting from the Back-to-School Medical and Dental Fair hosted by the College for Oral Health Science at the University of Technology.
The event, held on the weekend, was organised by the member of parliament for South East St Andrew, Julian Robinson.
Shirley said the event created an inexpensive means of taking care of her children’s oral health.
“I heard about the health fair so I carry my kids come to clean them teeth and it is going good so far. I did it last year, so I came back this year. For the most part, they (children) are ready (for back-to-school), I just wanted them to do some final check-up, so mi happy for today,” she said.
“I want to give them a pedi (pedicure) because mi want them fi look clean and that’s what I do for a living. Whenever they going back to school, I give all three a pedicure and a washout. We nuh have the cash overflowing, you know, but we have to try to make sure that they look good.”
PLEASED WITH SERVICES
Gladstone Cummings, who also benefitted from the dental services provided, expressed joy for what he described as a refreshing experience.
“Boy, mi mouth feel good,” he said as he laughed.
“I was supposed to do it from a long time, but I just didn’t get the chance. But it came along and I grab it. Last year, I took out a tooth and this year I am back to do cleaning. It feel 100 per cent better than how it was before. I wouldn’t mind if it continue for a long time.”
Member of Parliament Julian Robinson said that close to 500 people from communities such as, Nannyville and Woodford Park benefited from the services provided at the fair.
“The dental service was a big attraction, probably the main attraction of the health fair. Many persons were grateful to have free access to dental services. A lot of them required medicals, too, which we were able to provide,” he said.
“Overall, I believe we played a part in helping to alleviate the back-to-school burden.”