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Canada

Foundation Scholarship recipient Razvan Pitic of Laval University in Quebec wrote to thank PFA for the 2006 Achievement Award.

Aldo Boccio presenting Scholarship Award
to Toronto’s dental student

The PFA Ontario Section Aldo Boccio presented the Foundation scholarship Award to a University of Toronto dental student.

Costa Rica

The 2005 Foundation Scholarship Award went to junior Cynthia Pamela Rojas. The 2006 Award was presented to junior Evelyn Arce by Dean Carlos Fillroy and PFA Section Chair Ronald de la Cruz.

Chair Ronald de la Cruz presents Scholarship
to Evelyn Arce with Dean Carlos Filroy

India

Secretary/Treasurer T. J. Samraj reported the Foundation Scholarship Award was presented to Ms. Kanimozhi, BDS student from the Government Dental College Chennai.

L-R, past Dean Kannappan presenting Scholarship Award to recipient Ms. Kanimozhi with PFA Secretary T. Samraj

The award was presented by Dr. J. G. Kannappan, President of the Indian Association of Forensic Odontology, and Former Principal of the Government Dental School Chennai, during the Inaugural Function of the 4th National Conference of the Indian Association of Forensic Odontology held at Penang International Dental College in Salem last September.

Republic of Moldova

Dr. Steven Mackler, Chair of the North Carolina/Moldova Bilateral Committee, expresses his appreciation for the PFA support of the fluoride varnish program in the Republic of Moldova. PFA was the original supporter of this successful cooperative project that treated 9000 children in local orphanages. This program has served as a model for other eastern bloc countries. They ask that we consider funding a third program there with a grant of $1000.

Professors Vickie Overman and Charlotte Peterson of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Dentistry immunized 2710 children against chickenpox and provided dental fluoride treatments to some 4686 children in some 25 boarding schools and orphanages in 11 cities and villages across the country. The Instructors were assisted by four medical and dental soldiers from the North Carolina Army National Guard. The September 2005 program included vaccinating 1400 children against Hepatitis-A.

New York
PFA Dental Student Awards were presented to Columbia University College of Dental Medicine students Becky W. Gong and Caroline M. Hocking, to New York University College of Dentistry student Brian Fabb, to SUNY-Buffalo School of Dental Medicine student Perichole L. Eilers, and to Stony Brook University School of Dental Medicine student Larissa M. Figari.

The Foundation Scholarship Award was presented to junior Keith DaSilva at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine by Dean Ira Lamster and Associate Dean Martin Davis last May. Keith DaSilva was Co-chair for the student tutorial of the Academic Success Program.

Massachusetts
Tufts University School of Dental Medicine held their 13th Senior Awards Dinner last May. Student Wesley Min-Da Chiang was presented the PFA Senior Student Award by Associate Dean Mark Gonthier and PFA Past President Min Horiuchi.

L-R, Dean Mark Gonthier, Award recipient Wesley Min-Da Chiang, and PFA past President Min Horiuchi

Michigan
The Foundation Scholarship Awards were presented to Anne Lin of the University of Michigan School of Dentistry and to Rebecca Himm from the University of Detroit-Mercy. Their honor was highlighted in the Michigan PFA’s newsletter, News Update.

Anne Lin is originally from Maryland and has won the 2003 American Association of Dental Research (AADR) Student Research Fellowship. She presented her findings at the 2004 IADR Meeting. She will be entering an oral surgery residency program at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York.

Rebecca Himm joins her father’s dental practice in Livonia. Dr. Rebecca Himm was a 2005 volunteer for the Bay Cliff Health Camp and has participated in the “Give the Kids A Smile” programs.

A Foundation-sponsored program and supported by the Michigan PFA for the last four years, the Bay Cliff Health Camp provided dental care for the physically challenged again this year with dental students from the University of Detroit-Mercy School of Dentistry’s PFA Mentorship Program. Dr. Cheri Newman, an adjunct instructor in patient care, led the team of RDH Stephanie Newman and Dr. Will Thompson to assist in providing the dental treatments. Past PFA President and current Foundation President David Campbell and his wife Janet were volunteers a couple of years back and wrote an article for Dental World on the experience.

Japan Section Annual Meeting

82nd Annual Session of the Greater New York Dental Meeting, New York City

Australian Dental Association Congress/PFA Induction Ceremony, Sydney

Oklahoma PFA Meeting
PFA Management Team Meeting
Oklahoma State Dental Association Pierre Fauchard bust unveiled

Southern California Section Meeting and Luncheon, Anaheim

Canadian Dental Association Meeting/PFA Canada Meeting, Jasper, Alberta

100th Anniversary of the Chile Odontological Society, Santiago, Chile

27-30 Sept. 2007

148th ADA Meeting, San Francisco
PFA Academy & Foundation Annual Board Meetings, San Francisco

24-27 October 2007

95th FDI Congress, Dubai, UAE

Trustee Dolman presenting Award to past CDA President Burton Conrod

Argentina

International Trustee for Latin America Ernesto Acuna installed Dr. Norberto Montheil with his medal of authority as Section Chair for Argentina to replace our late lamented Senior Trustee Ernesto Levit.

Australia/New Zealand

International Trustee Jonathan Rogers reports that they currently have 299 Fellows with another 50 to 60 to be inducted at their biennial Australian Dental Association Congress in Sydney next year March. The current officers are: Section Chairman Mark Sinclair of New South Wales, Secretary/Treasurer Patrick Meaney of New South Wales (the largest populated State in Australia), Trustees Richard Sawer of South Australia, Gerry Clausen of Victoria, and Dexter Bambery of New Zealand. Last November, they hosted a successful Regional Dinner in South Australia at the Adelaide Club. Another Regional Dinner was held in Sydney this September at the Wharf Restaurant on the Sydney Harbour with some 74 in attendance along with Federal President of the Australian Dental Association Bill O’Reilly, NSW ADA President Chris Wilson, CEO of ADA NSW Matthew Fisher, ICD President-emeritus Sydney Dobbin, and noted prosthodontist Norton Duckmanton. PFA President-elect William Winspear attended both dinners, and he expressed his appreciation for mentor Brigadier Gordon Rowell.

The Hall of Fame Committee nominated famed orthodontist Dr. P. Raymond Begg for induction into the Hall of Fame in May, 2007, probably at P. R. Begg Museum in Adelaide.

Their Section's highest honor is the Gordon Rowell Prize. Gordon Rowell was the first President of the Australasian Section of PFA. He provided leadership and inspiration to the profession throughout Australia and in New South Wales in particular from the 1950s right through his retirement in 1990. This Editor first met Dr. Rowell in 1989 at a PFA Annual Meeting. Like the U.S. General Shira, General Rowell was of strong character, truly an inspiration to anyone who knew him. Bill Winspear was a lucky professional to learn at the feet of such a great man.

The PFA Student Awards of Excellence, which has a $600 AUD honorarium attached, were presented to three Fiji dental students attending the Fiji School of Medicine’s School of Oral Health.

Belgium/Luxembourg

Chair Jose Dahan hosted a March Meeting with speakers attorney Philippe Meulders, who addressed organizing medical Web sites, and Philippe Limbourg, who creates professional Web sites for doctors. This is an important topic as European laws are very strict regarding medical promotion in Europe. Dr. Dahan attended the annual Meeting in Las Vegas to discuss linking their Web site with the PFA site. The Belgium Section has proposed holding different European PFA Section Meetings in different countries so that all the European Sections might exchange ideas and suggestions for improving the PFA public image with other dentists.

Newly inducted Honorary PFA Fellow, FDI President Michele Aerden attended the ADA meeting Session to receive Honorary Fellowship from PFA and International Dentist of the Year Award from ADI.

Brazil

Section Chair Henrique Teitelbaum passed away last September, we were informed by the Brazilian Odontological Associacion. He had been ill with cancer. He was buried 8 September in Porto Alegre. International Trustee Ernesto Acuna sent condolences on behalf of PFA to his widow Suely.

Canada

Trustee for Canada Barry Dolman reported holding their annual Meeting in St. John’s, Newfoundland, in coordination with the annual Canadian Dental Association Convention. Their Awards Luncheon had over 100 in attendance including CDA President Wayne Halstrom. CDA Past President Jack Cottrell, CDA Vice President Deborah Stymiest, along with PFA Chairs Gary MacDonald (Atlantic Canada), Aldo Boccio (Ontario) and past CDA President Tom Brenneman (Western Canada), ICD President Gordon Thompson, ACD President Marcia Boyd, DCF President (and past CDA President) Bernie Dolansky, and CDA past Presidents Ray Wenn, Louis Dube, Toby Gushue, Alf Dean, George Sweetnam, JCDA Editor John O’Keefe, and University of Montreal Dean Claude Lamarche.

The Canadian Region installed 30 new Fellows: Drs. David Zaparinuk, Paul Demarco. Marc Robert, Marina Sexton, Thomas Randall, Donald Walsh, Bruce Ward, Brian Rinehart, Mark Darling, Robin Gamble, Stuart Root, Christena Chruszez, Barry Maze, Marc Mollot, Randall Croutze, Patricia Kmet, Adrian Palencar, Larry Raley, Myron Stein, Christopher Haunsperger, Wayne Maillet, Barry Fleming, Jack Sherman, Carolyn Poon Woo, Ross Anderson, Brenda Thomson, and Scott Maclean.

PFA President Howard Mark attended and addressed the luncheon. The Canadian Section Distinguished Dentist of the Year Award was presented to Fellow Burton Conrod (a past CDA President) of Sydney, Nova Scotia, who is currently FDI President-elect.

Susan Conrod, a junior at Dalhousie University, was the winner of the Dentsply competition to represent Canada in the Las Vegas finals.

DCF (the Dentistry Canadian Fund – an arms-length charitable fund of the Canadian Dental Association) is working with PFA Canada to formulate a fund so as facilitate Canadian charitable donations to PFA.

The next PFA Section Banquet Meeting will be during the CDA Meeting in Jasper, Alberta, next May 24-26. 2007.

Chile

International Trustee for Latin America, Ernesto Acuna, participated in the Induction Ceremony last year in Santiago de Chile by invitation of Dr. Luis Felipe Jimenez, then Section Chair. He participated in their Induction Ceremony at the Intercontinental Hotel to bring in nine new Fellows before a crowd of 55 attending. Trustee Ernesto Acuna presented Chair Jimenez his medal of authority as Chile Chair.

Fellow Mauricio Rudolph, head of the Centennial Foundation of the Odontological Chilean Society (Sociedad Odontologica de Chile), invited all the PFA officers to attend their Centennial Ceremonies in August 2007.

Costa Rica

Chair Ronald de la Cruz reported that the Costa Rican PFA Section had been legally registered as an Association last April 2005. Dr. Cruz will continue to serve as Section Chair. The Section Fellows are composed of current or former faculty members of the University of Costa Rica School of Dentistry. Their 2004 renovated multi-media laboratory created two case presentation/conference rooms, an office for the media technician and a large student computer work area. Ten student-use desktop computers were acquired for the lab that are connected to the Internet by a wireless network. The Professors have seven multimedia projectors and six laptop computers for classroom use. Students are required to make case presentations using this equipment. The lectures are put on DVDs in Spanish and may be shared with other Latin America dental schools.

Financial restraints have limited their goal of bringing a world-class lecturer to Costa Rica so they have allied with FUNDECO, Costa Rica’s non-profit organization for continuing dental education. The Loader-Brenes Espinach Lecture will become a part of their annual event.

Costa Rica is the home of the late Fernando Brenes-Espinach who endowed the Foundation to serve the dental needy.

Bulgaria

Section Chair Dr. Laura Andreeva will continue to serve another term.

Germany

Section Chair Frank Braun has ten new candidates for Initiation.

India

The dignitaries at the 4th National
Conference of Forensic Dentistry

Section Secretary T. Samraj reports meeting during the 4th National Conference of the Indian Association of Forensic Odontology held at Penang International Dental College last September. In the picture, left to right, are IAFO Secretary S. Balagopal, Viayaka Mission Hospital Salem Director N. V. Chandrasekar, VMHR (Salem University) Vice Chancellor J. A. Sathish Kumar, Chief Guest Dr. A. Shanmugasundaram, IAFO President and PFA Fellow J. G. Kannappan, Secretary of the Organizing Committee Dr. J. Sabarinathan, PFA Secretary T. Samraj, Chairman of the Organizing Committee, and IAFO Treasurer Dr. Raji Viola Solomon, a PFA Fellow.

Ireland

Section Chair Dr. Christopher Lynch has inducted five new Fellows into membership. His Section has donated textbooks to a dental institution, provided financial support to an international charity, and hosted a PFA dinner.

Israel

Section Chair Professor Alexander Mersel is reorganizing the Section after the various war activities have ceased to allow safe movement around the country.

Italy

New Section Chair Dr. Andrea Pantarotto will host a PFA meeting in February 2007.

Kenya

Chair Pankaj Patel has been organizing an African Section. This year they have been helping support a Kenya Dental Center.

Macedonia

Chair Professor Branislav Dastevski has inducted a new member during the 4th Congress of Dentist in Macedonia.

Chair Branislav Dastevski inducts new Fellow

Mexico

Chair Ernesto Acuna (Latin America International Trustee) held their Induction Ceremony last November at the Centro Asturiano where ten new Fellows were taken into membership. Past PFA President Gary Lowder attended to assist. Following the Induction ceremony, Founder and former Dean Armando Hernandez of the Dental School of the Universidad de Lasalle Baijo introduced his school’s Foundation Scholarship recipient. The PFA Mentorship Program was introduced in the three dental schools in Mexico City—Intercontinental University, Technological University of Mexico, and Latin-American University. Twelve students are currently participating.

Netherlands

Chair Dr. Anette Dony-Nabe held a PFA Meeting last Autumn in Apeldoorn and a Spring Meeting in Utrecht. They inducted six new members and elected Dr. Buisman as their new Secretary and Dr. Donker as their new Treasurer. They presented two student Awards.

Japan

The Japan Section hosted their PFA annual Meeting this November at the Shofukaku Hotel in Shizuoka. More information will be forthcoming.