Newtown Dentist Climbing For The Cause Of A Child’s Smile

By Jan Howard

Dr Stephen Hoffman of Newtown wants to help children smile, and he would go to any lengths to help children who need an operation that will restore their smiles, hope, and dignity. Because he enjoys mountain climbing, Dentists Climb for a Cause, a fundraiser to benefit Operation Smile, is tailor-made for him.

On July 27 he will join 26 other dentists from across the nation in an attempt to climb Mt Adams in Washington State. The purpose of the climb is to create awareness of and raise funds for Operation Smile, which has been providing dentistry, reconstructive surgery, and related health care to indigent children and young adults in developing countries and the United States since 1982.

“This group has done this two other times,” Dr Hoffman said this week. “Some are repeat climbers. It’s been a good fundraiser for Operation Smile.”

Dr Hoffman’s climbing team hopes to raise $100,000 for Operation Smile in the form of pledges and donations. All proceeds go directly to the fundraiser and will not be used to fund any expenses related to the climb.

Operation Smile, headquartered in Norfolk, Va., is a private non-profit volunteer medical services organization that has provided life-changing surgery for facial hemangiomas, cleft lips and palates, and other facial and teeth deformities to over 15,000 children in 12 countries and over 20,000 children in the United States. It also provides education and training around the world to physicians and other health care professionals to achieve long-term self-sufficiency.

Mt Adams at 12,276 feet is the second highest volcano in Washington and one of five major volcanic peaks in the Pacific Northwest. However, Mt Adams is not the highest mountain that Dr Hoffman has climbed. “I’ve actually climbed two volcanoes in Ecuador that are over 19,000 feet,” he said.

 “Even on a mountain of this lesser altitude you have to be prepared,” he said. “You climb fairly slowly and focus on your breathing so you get good amounts of air. It’s step, breathe, step, breathe. You have to think about your breathing.”

Dr Hoffman said there is also a special way to walk, which he described as a climbing step, when climbing a mountain.

Dr Hoffman sent out 30 to 40 fundraising letters to friends and family and to vendors, such as labs and supply companies with whom his office does business. “I hope they will support this effort,” he said. “It’s a great group.”

He said he is just starting to get replies to the letter so it will be a while before he and his 26 fellow climbers know whether they will meet their goal of $100,000.

“No amount is too small,” Dr Hoffman said. “We will accept any amount.”

This is the first time Dr Hoffman has been involved with Dentists Climb for a Cause and Operation Smile. “I was given information about it a number of years ago,” he noted, adding that when he saw literature about it in a recent publication, he decided to reply.

“Because I’ve climbed before, when I contacted the leader, he was actively recruiting me,” Dr Hoffman said. Previous experience is not required for the climb, he added.

On July 27, the dentists will drive to the 5,800 foot elevation of Mt Adams, and then climb to 8,500 feet, where they will make camp. “We’ll go to the summit from there,” he said. “It can be done in three days. That’s the nice thing about this trip, it doesn’t take a long time commitment.”

Dr Hoffman hopes to participate in a surgical team for Operation Smile at some time in the future. “I have experience in treating people in an operating room setting,” he said. “I would be part of a surgical team.

“They book these trips months in advance,” he said. “They seem to have adequate staff.”

The trips are usually for two weeks, he explained. “They line up the children ahead of time.”

Most of the more difficult cases need more than one surgical visit, he said. Because of that, surgeons and dentists in the various countries are trained to take care of follow-up visits that are required.

“Even a single phase operation can require eight to ten hour surgeries,” he said. “Sometimes dental procedures have to be done first before the surgery.”

He noted that because most third world countries’ surgeons and practitioners are not able to keep upgrading their skills, “Participating with our American people is like a big continuing education program.”

The annual Operation Smile Physicians’ Training Program brings surgeons from around the world to the United States for training in specialized surgical skills.

The Operation Smile staff, which travels to 12 countries to perform surgeries, is made up of oral surgeons, plastic surgeons and dentists, and other medical professionals.

“It would be like going to a major metropolitan hospital,” Dr Hoffman said. “These people are very well trained.”

The medical professionals cover all their own expenses in making the trips, he said. “They receive no funding from donations to Operation Smile.”

Of the children the dental teams go to help, Dr Hoffman said, “It must be so hard to see themselves and compare themselves with other children.” Following the surgeries, their quality of life is much improved.

 The World Care Program brings children and young adults to the United States for surgeries that are too complicated to be performed during in-country missions.

Dr Hoffman has practiced dentistry in Newtown for 13 years. He is active in the dental residency program at Danbury Hospital where he serves as the department chairman. A resident for ten years, he is originally from New Jersey. He and his wife, Carrie, have two daughters, Kayla, 8, and Alexandra, 5, who attend Sandy Hook Elementary School.

In addition to mountain climbing, Dr Hoffman enjoys running, mountain biking, and hiking. In addition to the two volcanoes in Ecuador, he has climbed Mt Rainier and spent some time in the White Mountains in New Hampshire.

“One of the more unique events I have been involved with was a 12 person team running a relay over 200 miles through New Hampshire,” he said. “We competed with 50 other teams and raced continuously for 24 hours.”

Operation Smile spends 8.5 percent of its operating budget on overhead, allocating 91.5 percent of cash and in-kind donations directly to programs. In its 18 years, Operation Smile has built a base of more than 4,000 volunteers from around the world, representing eight medical professions.

It has received many awards including the first Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize in 1996 for “exemplary and significant contributions to ease human suffering,” and the Kellogg’s Hannah Neil World of Children Award in 1999.

It costs as little as $750 for an Operation Smile cleft lip surgery that can change a child’s life.

For information, contact Dr Hoffman at 426-0045. Tax-deductible donations may be made out to Dentists Climb for a Cause and forwarded to Dr Stephen Hoffman, 172 Mt Pleasant Road, Newtown, CT 06470.