For increasing amounts of patients, dental care is a form of treatment that is financially out of reach, and that spells trouble for their overall health. Poor dental health affects a person’s ability to eat, their ability to communicate and their appearance, all of which may have negative effects on their well-being and self-esteem.

Brighton dentist Pasco Scarpella is keenly aware of the difficulties facing those patients without the means to pay for regular dental care. Appearing before a recent assembly of the Brighton City Council, Scarpella spoke of addressing that need through volunteer efforts.

“The reason I’m here tonight is because I met with Mr. Esquibel a couple of weeks ago about a community service project I am organizing, called the Colorado Mission of Mercy,” Scarpella said.

According to Scarpella, this year’s COMOM chairperson, the COMOM is a group of between 300 to 400 community members from Brighton and 300 to 400 dental professionals from throughout the state and beyond. Their mission is to support a big, “M*A*S*H-style” free dental clinic of 120 portable dental units. The clinic will be set up at the Adams County fairgrounds Sept 11-12,

“We are going to try and do everything we possibly can possibly do for people who have nowhere else to go,” Scarpella said. “We have a lot of Third World situations right here in town.”

Going into their third annual event, COMOM has the experience and track record to ensure a successful weekend, this time focusing on Brighton and the surrounding areas.

“The first year we did this in Alamosa. Last year, we did this in eastern Larimer County,” Scarpella said.

The sheer volume of dental work accomplished at last year’s COMOM in Loveland was stunning. More than 900 volunteers provided in excess of $1 million in free dental care for 1,411 patients in two days. It’s a service that literally brought tears to some of the patients, as seen in an eight-minute video documenting the event. They are tears of happiness and gratitude that seem perfectly in keeping with the upbeat, generous attitude of the volunteers.

“It really does have a carnival-like atmosphere. It’s not at all what you might picture, going to the dentist,” Scarpella said. “People really do have a good time and it is a fun for the patients. They get a lot of things done that they would have no other way to do.”

For some, the care is a long time coming, making it all the more sweet to finally feel some relief.

“Many of the people we see are people who suffer for years with these problems, and they no financial means and no programs, no insurance and no way to afford it. So we try and help them with that,” Scarpella said.

To that end, Scarpella and COMOM are looking for help in floating the project again this year.

“Our emphasis is going to be to find community support and in-kind services from businesses,” Scarpella said. “We need to find venues to feed the volunteers, donations of food and snacks for the patients, water, entertainment for the patients, because they have to wait around a long time.”

For more information, to volunteer or to make a donation to COMOM, visit www.cdaonline.org/COMOM.htm

Contact MetroWest City Editor Gene Sears at 303-659-2522 Ext.217, or e-mail gsears@metrowestnewspapers.com. Alternately, you can send comments to Gene or join the community conversation on this topic via his blog, dailybrightonian.blogspot.com.