Dr. Kevin L. Roach

Dear Fellows,
In my editorial in the January/February issue of Dental World, I wrote about the loss of Past President Dr. Larry Barrett and his generosity toward so many causes that were dear to him, including our Foundation, and how he "walked the talk." Shortly before that issue went to print, I received word of his $15,000 Legacy Gift to the Foundation. Well done, my friend, and thank you for continuing to raise the bar for the rest of us! My wish for 2012 is that more Fellows would consider the tax implications of settling their estates and include a Legacy Gift to the Foundation of the Pierre Fauchard Academy in their wills. For more information on contributing a Foundation Legacy Gift, contact Jennifer Teale, Executive Director at teale@fauchard.org.

Earlier in the year, the Foundation Student Scholarship letters were sent to the deans of U.S. dental schools to request their 2012 nominees. These students must be in the junior year of their program and be sound academically but, more importantly, they must show leadership capabilities through their class/school involvement. Because of the increasing number of worthy grant applications and the recent parallel drop in the return on our investments, the Foundation trustees have lowered the 2012 student scholarship amount to $1000 from $1500. This move was deemed prudent in today's uncertain financial climate. In spite of this reality, the trustees decided to consider additional international scholarships and asked the Grants and Scholarships Committee to develop a rationale for awarding of this group of scholarships based on the currency value in most of these countries as related to the U.S. dollar. A decision on this issue will be made at our Annual Board Meeting this October in San Francisco for implementation in calendar year 2013.

Our Executive Director's report in this issue details the successful grant applicants for 2011. I am proud of the diverse and international flavor found in Mrs. Teale's compilation. Space does not allow me to elaborate, but I want to stress that all the successful grantees are required to file a report to the Foundation by the end of 2012 that details the use of the awarded funds and provides a financial statement and any photos that can be used in future issues of Dental World.

One such report summarizes the 2010 Chilean Section grant. As a young philatelist, I developed a love of geography and a passion for visiting later in life the many fascinating countries whose stamps I was collecting. Thus I was enthralled with the Chilean grant to treat the indigenous population of Easter Island. Although I have traveled to Cusco, Machu Pichu, the Galapagos Islands, and many other South American locales, Easter Island was not one of my destinations, perhaps because it is a 5-hour flight from Santiago. Easter Island, of course, is home to hundreds of "Moai" monolithic human figures carved from rock by Polynesian ancestors between 1250 and 1500.

Almost all Moai have overly large heads that are three fifths the size of their bodies. The tallest stood 33 feet in height and weighed 82 tons. These Moai are chiefly the living faces of deified ancestors. I give my joyous congratulations to Chilean Section Chair Dr. Guillermo M. Zarate and PFA Region 7 Trustee Dr. Francisco O. Campos for arranging a team of endodontists, oral surgeons, and general practitioners, all PFA fellows, to travel to this remote locale and treat the very needy population of 5000 people. Modern comprehensive dentistry in a setting frozen in time speaks volumes to the diversity of Foundation Grants.

--Dr. Kevin L. Roach
President of the Foundation of the Pierre Fauchard Academy