How much would it take for you to agree to be taped to the wall?
For Dentistry Prof. Phil Richards, it would take $1,500.
Richards agreed to be taped to a wall, for kicks, if the Jonathan Taft Honorary Service Society, a volunteer organization in the School of Dentistry, could raise the $1,500 necessary to help two children with facial deformities.
The organization was able to raise $1,300 – almost enough to cover the cost of surgeries for two children. Inspired by their success so far, the Taft Society has decided to hold a second fundraiser this week, and more professors have joined in the fun to encourage donations.
Dentistry Prof. Merle Jaarda plans to shave his head, beard and mustache if enough money is raised, and Dentistry Prof. Jeff Shotwell will let students take an impression of his face with alginate, a substance commonly used in dentistry to make a cast of teeth.
“It’s a chance for the students to see one of their (professors) on the receiving end of some type of dental procedure and not in the role as their supervisor,” Shotwell said.
The money raised will go to Operation Smile, an international fund-raising organization for children with facial deformities. The group sends volunteers all over the world to help with corrective surgeries.
This year marks the first time University students have collected funds for Operation Smile.
Although collection cans are only set up in the Dental School, third-year Dentistry student and fundraising organizer James Powell encouraged students in other schools to join a branch of the Operation Smile club at the University, as he is in the process of founding one.
First introduced to Operation Smile while in the Philippines in 1997 on a church mission, Powell said he was stunned by how desperately some children there needed facial surgery.
“Most people living in the U.S. don’t know that the need is out there and you don’t see many people walk around with deformities here,” he said.
Powell explained the severity of facial deformities.
“It can really hurt someone’s social life, and babies die because they can’t be fed,” he said.
After the fundraiser ends, the professors will honor their pledges by performing the amusing antics during a lunch for student volunteers on Jan. 5.