Sweet Success For Candy Buyback

The success of the Candy Buyback conducted by Dental Associates of Connecticut continues to grow, according to Cindy Manning, manager of patient and public relations for the organization.

The 8th Annual Candy Buyback, where children and parents are encouraged to bring unopened, excess Halloween candy to any Dental Associates office to be purchased for $2 per pound (up to ten pounds per person), was held on Tuesday, November 12. More than 1,600 pounds of candy was collected at the four offices. Dental Associates has offices in Newtown, Danbury, New Milford, and Trumbull.

“We exceeded last year by 12 percent,” said Ms Manning. Last year 1,447 pounds of candy was collected. In its first seven years the organization had bought back almost three tons of candy, valued at more than $12,000.

“This event gets larger every year,” said pediatric dentist Dr John Iwasaki. “The Candy Buyback program is important to us because we feel we have a responsibility to our patients and communities to promote good dental health practices. By continually having this event, it shows we are committed to this goal.”

Candy collected during the Buyback is shipped to Operation Gratitude, a California organization that sends care packages to military personnel overseas.

New this year was an encouragement for children who visited Dental Associates to write a letter to go with their candy to the troops.

“The majority of the kids who came in did that,” said Ms Manning. “The kids took their time, and really wrote nice notes to the troops, thanking them for what they do.”

In addition to the Candy Buyback on Tuesday, staff members from Dental Associates of Newtown were on Main Street last Sunday night, handing out toothbrushes and glow sticks to trick or treaters.