It’s true. We see it daily at Spillers Orthodontics. Patients come to our office and they aren’t happy with their smiles. Some are suffering from low self-esteem. Some are teased at school. Many are adults who have suffered for years. They want to smile and laugh, but are too embarrassed.
Being able to impact a person’s self-esteem is incredibly rewarding. It is the reason Dr. Don Spillers chose to become an orthodontist. He had what he describes as “really bad teeth and a severe overjet.” Dr. Spillers was able to get braces at age 14, and it changed his life. At that tender, young age, he knew he wanted to become an orthodontist and help others as he’d been helped.
Knowing that financial limitations can keep people from receiving the much-needed orthodontic treatment they want or need, Dr. Spillers became a provider for Smiles Change Lives in 2011. Smiles Change Lives is a nonprofit that helps families who cannot afford the full cost of braces secure treatment for their children by connecting them with caring orthodontic providers in their area willing to donate their services. Through this partnership, Spillers Orthodontics has donated over $15,000 of care yearly to hard-working and deserving patients.
Smiles Change Lives operates in 47 states and Canada. In collaboration with more than 750 orthodontists, they’ve helped over 10,000 kids receive braces since 1997. Families desiring help through Smiles Change Lives can download and complete an application: www.smileschangelives.org/apply. Children must meet their qualifications and be motivated to follow the assigned orthodontist’s treatment plan.
“Smiles Change Lives is a truly rewarding experience. I know firsthand the transformation that orthodontic treatment can provide for a child,” says Dr. Don Spillers. “It offers our practice yet another unique way to give back.”
With locations in Warner Robins and Macon, Ga., Spillers Orthodontics is where great smiles begin.
*Photo courtesy of the American Association of Orthodontists
