| |
Hello,
everyone! We are back from my second visit to Afghanistan, and
we all had a great time. Accompanying me were children's yoga
instructor Hayley Parlen, who took on another career as dental
assistant while we were there, and Karlos Benavides, videographer,
multilingual translator, and swatter of flies. We worked four
hours each day in a free clinic for women and children, doing
basic teeth cleaning with ultrasonics and extractions as well.
Because virtually no one has gotten dental care in their lifetime,
many problems exist and making a decision of where to start
is often a dilemma. For this reason, I am even more determined
to try to provide a center where exceptional Afghan citizens
can learn basic dental technology such as cleaning teeth. Terrible
problems exist that could be prevented by regular dental cleanings.
I spoke with many people there
about our project, and everyone was impressed with what we
were doing. A photographer for the NATO newspaper hired an
unemployed Afghan physician to translate for us in the clinic,
which simplified our treatment immensely. He also arranged
for us to present our project to the NATO representatives
there, and it received a favorable response from several countries.
Finland may actually build the clinic for us in Kabul, and
the Turkish forces there want to provide security on the site.
I am going to be communicating with them more to solidify
our relationship, as well as with other members of the Afghan
Government and other NGO's working in Afghanistan. I am currently
looking for a parcel of land in an underserved and densely
populated area of Kabul, hoping to find someone living in
the United States that owns land there that we could use to
build the clinic, school, and hospitality center. If you know
any Afghan people, please ask them.
Afghanistan is in the midst
of incredible change. People there can see that the Taliban
are not coming back, and are visibly happier. Everywhere you
see signs of development and industrious labor. Each afternoon,
I would freely walk about Kabul and associate with the shoppers,
workers, and children that are ever-present. At no time did
I fear for my security, or even feel weird vibes from anyone.
People are generally happy that change for the good is coming
back, and they openly appreciate Americans and are thankful
for what is being done. We want to continue to address the
almost total lack of dental care there. Volunteer dentists
are now waiting for the establishment of a center where they
can provide technical training and much-needed basic dental
care for the Afghan people, who basically lost their infrastructure
and need tools to improve their culture and lives.
We are always looking for volunteers
to work in many ways. Please let us know if you would like
to help. If you would like to volunteer or send a donation,
please send it to the:
Afghanistan Dental Relief Project, Inc; P.O. Box 734; Santa
Barbara, CA 93102-0734
(a 501c3 Nonprofit Organization)
Email: ADRP@VERIZON.NET
Thank you for your help, financial support, and encouragement.
James G. Rolfe, DDS, President
Afghanistan Dental Relief Project, Inc.; adrpinc.org.
|
|
