Our Patients In The News The Texas City Sun newspaper snapped a shot of one of our patients, Lou, as she shows off her smile in the 2004 Texas City St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Dr. Hackbarth recently revitalized her smile with BriteSmile Bleaching. Lou is very proud of her whiter, brighter smile!

Local dentist marks Children’s Dental Month with free services

TEXAS CITY: Dr. John Hackbarth’s office to give free teeth checks, cleanings

Saturday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. 2004

By Lora-Marie Bernard
Texas City Sun

A dentist is offering clean teeth and bright smiles to Texas City children who visit his office Saturday.

Dr. John Hackbarth and his staff are volunteering their services between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday to children who need their teeth checked and cleaned.

For 12 years, Hackbarth has observed Children’s Dental Health Month with a day of free cleanings for children under 13 years of age.

“I have a friend in California and we were talking about ways to help and I started doing this,” he said. “They do it in California.”

Between 60 and 70 families converge annually at the 1708 Amburn Road office on the designated Saturday. This year, already 60 children have been scheduled. Hackbarth maintains an “on-call” list when the slots fill up.

He said he uses the list to call parents to bring their children for cleanings when there are cancellations or no shows for scheduled appointments.

“The hygienist and the whole staff help the whole time,” he said. “We’re running around the whole morning.”

The appointments are scheduled every 10 minutes. Call 935-2111 for more information.

Children as young as 2 years old have been brought to the office for the free exams and cleanings, Hackbarth said. But, most kids are between the ages of 4 and 10.

“There are poor families who can get assistance from Medicare and other agencies,” he said. “Then, there are people who can afford private insurance and that takes care of it. But, then there is a spot in the middle and they don’t have insurance. We’ve gotten a lot of kids that fall in that category. That’s who we are trying to help and reach.”

During the years, Hackbarth has been the recipient of two mayoral proclamations for his effort. No other Texas City dentist participates in Hackbarth’s program.

Hackbarth maintains a relatively low community profile, but he has been able to spark some interest and support for his annual effort.

One year children were able to register for a free bicycle from a local department store. He hopes to have a similar giveaway drawing this year.

Otherwise, balloons are a staple gift item as are toothbrushes and other dental items.

“The idea is to raise awareness for children’s dental health,” he said.

Lora-Marie Bernard is a Texas City Sun reporter. She can be reached at (409) 945-3441 or by email at lora.bernard@texascitysun.com.

Hackbarth gives free dental care to children

TEXAS CITY: Local office celebrates Children’s Dental Health Month

By Molly Lynch
Texas City Sun

Worried faces turned into bright smiles as children walked away after a free teeth cleaning and checkup at a dentist’s office Saturday.

Dr. John Hackbarth and his staff volunteered five hours Saturday to provide the service free to children in observance of Children’s Dental Health Month. This is the 12th year Hackbarth has provided the day of free service to children.

“I think it’s the most wonderful event in the area for children and it brings awareness to parents the necessity to ensure healthy teeth,” said Martha Felter, a clerk at Hackbarth’s office who has helped coordinate the event for nine years.

Children who came into the office Saturday not only walked away with bright smiles, but balloons, free toothbrushes and other goodies.

Hackbarth and his staff were steadily busy Saturday with the number of children who visited his office at 1708 Amburn Road.

“All our slots get filled in a few days and we have a waiting list,” Hackbarth said, noting that he was able to get quite a few children in who were on the waiting list.

Hackbarth stressed the importance of parents bringing their children to the dentist. On Saturday, Hackbarth noticed that two children, ages 2 1/2 and 4, were still using pacifiers which has affected the formation of their teeth.

“If kids use pacifiers too long, the growth and the development of the bones is affected,” he said, noting that surgery could be needed in such situations.

His discovery with the two children allowed him to consult with the parents and make them aware of the harmful situation of prolonged pacifier use.

For a number of children, Saturday was their first trip to the dentist’s office.

“We had a couple of them who were scared today and left here smiling with their teeth clean,” Hackbarth said.