It’s not uncommon to see people lining up for Boxing Day sales or even a new iPhone. Dozens of people lined up outside a Regina business before dawn for a service most people would rather avoid, a trip to the dentist.
“Trying to get some teeth fixed; pulled, fillings, cleaning. Everything they’ll do for me for free,” Danny Grumbo said while waiting in line.
For nine years Enhance Dental Centre has been holding Dentistry with Heart. The clinic will take patients from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. offering free care on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Information about the service is spread primarily through word of mouth and social media. It even reached Carlyle, Sask. and Patti Sweet and her family drove in for dental work.
Global News reached out to the dental office for comment, but they said they are unable to comment on this matter because of rules set out by their professional regulatory body.
However, it wasn’t all smiles. With the event only running for five hours not everyone could be served, one of those who had to go home without an appointment was Sandy van Kessel.
She’s had a toothache for over two weeks and arrived at 7:30 a.m. to find a lengthy line already in place.
Her friend, Brenda Zurowski, volunteered to take the senior citizen to the dentist. Zurowski said in an email they waited outside until around 12:30 p.m. when they and others still waiting in line were told the clinic could only take five more patients.
The pair left frustrated that they weren’t told sooner that it was unlikely they’d be able to be served, feeling like they wasted four-and-a-half hours waiting outside in the wind.