Submitted by Fish for Teeth.
Fish for Teeth is spot-on with its mission of fixing the teeth of islanders who cannot otherwise afford dental care. If a toothache is causing stress and pain, a tooth infection is causing serious health concerns or if you’re simply overdue for basic oral hygiene, Fish for Teeth is here to help.
A trip to the emergency room will not fix an infected tooth — the hospital may offer antibiotics, but only a dentist can solve the problem. But it’s challenging for islanders to find a dentist that accepts Medicaid/Apple Health, and many people do not have any dental insurance, and can’t afford dental care. Fish for Teeth is here to fill this need.
Fish for Teeth sponsors the Community Dental Clinic four times per year, right here in Friday Harbor, helping over 100 individuals per year. Fish for Teeth leases the clinic space, and cooperates with San Juan County Health & Community Services for secure record-keeping and clinic scheduling. An application for services can be found at fishforteeth.com.
Through 2026 and 2027, Fish for Teeth will increase the number of people served to over 250 by leasing clinic space, one day each month, for Dr. Jessica Dubek and her DentALL traveling dental team. This monthly clinic adds 15-20 patients each month, in addition to our four-times-a-year regular clinics. We are grateful to Dubek and her team, and to PeaceHealth, which is providing funding through the Peace Island Medical Center community benefit grant.
Fish for Teeth funds its programs with the Fish Taco fundraiser that usually happens each fall, and with earnings from our Penny-Press machine, located in front of Friday Harbor Drug on Spring Street. People can also drop their Kings Market and Kings Marine receipts into the receptacle on the penny smasher, and Valmark will donate 1% of the receipt totals to Fish for Teeth.
The largest and most important funding source of Fish for Teeth is through direct donations from caring individuals in our community. It is easy to donate through the website at fishforteeth.com. Due to scheduling conflicts with the organizers, there was no Fish Taco fundraiser this fall, so direct donations are all the more important this year.
Fish for Teeth is a small, lean, 100% volunteer organization. There are no paid employees, and our advertising, fundraising and administrative budget is very low. We are focused on the task of fixing teeth, and every donated dollar goes directly toward that cause. Fish for Teeth is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so any donation is tax-deductible.
A win-win donation scenario for those over 70-and-a-half years old is to direct a Qualified Charitable Distribution through their IRA towards a nonprofit organization, like Fish for Teeth. Fish for Teeth would like to thank our contributors for keeping our program rolling since 2007, and thank so many individuals in our community for bringing everything together to make our program work.
