Serving Those Who Served: Students and Faculty Deliver Care to Local Veterans

College of Dentistry students and faculty combined their commitment to military service with their passion for dentistry during the college’s annual Give Veterans A Smile (GVAS) event in November. With the support of volunteer staff, they provided much-needed dental care to 20 local veterans.

“Unless you are classified as 100% disabled by the VA, you are not entitled to any oral health benefits after retirement or separation from the military,” said event organizer Jena Hickman, a third-year dental student who earned her commission as a Second Lieutenant in the Army in 2022. “This leaves a large population of veterans in central Ohio—and everywhere—without regular dental care.”

Clinical Assistant Professor Theodore Jackson, DMD, co-advisor to the college’s Armed Forces Club and an Air Force veteran who served—among other locations—in South Korea, St. Louis, and Germany—shares Jena’s concern. “I’m committed to increasing awareness of the dental coverage gap and expanding access to care through our student clinics,” he said. “By leveraging the skills and compassion of our dental students, we can provide essential services to veterans who might otherwise go without—while also instilling in future dentists a deep sense of service and community responsibility.”

For Carson Renne, a senior Ohio State student and Army veteran who served 4 ½ years in Fort Benning, the event is an essential resource. At 26, he no longer qualifies for coverage under his parents’ insurance and depends on GVAS for dental care until graduation. Asked what the event means to him, he summed up his feelings simply: “It’s phenomenal.”