James

When James Hardy experienced Covenant Community Care at an outreach event, most of his teeth were either fractured or severely decayed and had to be taken out. Two oral surgery interns, through our partnership with the University of Detroit Mercy Oral Surgery program, provided him with the initial extractions and fitted him for dentures.

James had some concerns about getting his new dentures. “I don’t want to have someone say… ‘Dang, he must have just got those!’ I wanted my teeth worked on so they looked used, like old regular teeth.” After receiving the upper portion of the denture, James confessed that friends and family told him that his new teeth didn’t really look like him. Dr. Lynn Eickholt, Covenant’s Chief Dental Officer, immediately stepped in to address his concerns.

When recalling his experience with Dr. Lynn, James said, “…she takes her time and she does what you ask [for]. I was comfortable and it helped me have patience [throughout the process]” Dr. Eickholt asked James to put his teeth in and realized there were some bite issues. Dr. Lynn shared that often in Detroit, she sees patients that have ill-fitting, poorly made, and/or defective dentures. She cares for patients that oftentimes can’t close their mouths properly and even cannot eat. “I made it a mission of mine that if we do a case and it’s not functioning well, we’re going to make it right.” James patiently waited for Covenant to make it right and in the meantime became like family to the team.

“When we deliver someone’s dentures, it’s like a party,” said Dr. Lynn. When he finally received his new teeth, James shared, “I got some beautiful teeth. They are perfect. Perfect.”