Philanthropy
Dedication To Oral Health
At SMA Dental, we believe that good oral health should be accessible to everyone. That’s why we’ve spent years reaching out to communities around the world, offering professional, modern dentistry to those who need it most. Global health is everyone’s responsibility, and we’re doing our part to extend our services both near and far.
Our Story
It all started in 1992 with Dr. Richard Schmotter’s first trip to Mexico to treat the Huichol Indians, the indigenous people of Sierra Madre Occidental range. Every year, Dr. Richard Schmotter would travel with a team of dental professionals to treat patients who had never seen a dentist before. This fused a love of travel and learning about other cultures with purpose. After several years, the original team lost one of their leaders, and the trips stopped with that.
When Dr. Richard Schmotter’s Son, Dr. Alex Schmotter was in dental school, they decided to take it upon themselves to start serving the Huichol population again. Drs. Richard and Alex Schmotter, along with hygienist Patricia Rae and assistants Veronica and Reina from the SMA Dental Team made three trips to serve the Huichol population in 2014.
The Schmotter family’s love for travel brought them to Tanzania to hike Mount Kilimanjaro. During their travels, they formed powerful relationships with local orphanages and felt a desire to help. They promised to return with their mobile dental clinic and team to treat the children and surrounding communities.
Word got out about the dental team’s work abroad, and a friend of the practice who founded Ambassadors of Hope and Opportunity (AHO) asked if they could treat some of the homeless youth population in Marin County. As a recent graduate from dental school, Dr. Alex Schmotter would fill the holes in his schedule with appointments to treat the homeless youth of Marin County. Dr. Alex built a strong connection with AHO, providing the youth a dental home and participating in community outreach events. It became clear that the team did not have to travel halfway around the World to find people who need care.
Where We Go & What We Do
When the Schmotter’s met Dr. Sotoodeh and Dr. Marin, the team was all-in and ready for new opportunities. With a shared vision, our team has provided dental care in countries including Myanmar, Cambodia, Peru, Kenya, Tanzania, Mexico, and Uganda. We are self funded, bringing our entire clinic packed into suitcases.
But we can’t ignore the need that we see in our local community. We are motivated to bring the community together, so that those in need can feel the security of having a dental home. We have partnered with Oral Surgeon Dr. Alex Kashef and Image Dental Group to host free clinics in our office to reach the homeless youth community of Marin County. Through these efforts, and partnering with programs like AHO, we provide quality dental care to as many community members as possible.
What Motivates Us
We are a group of dentists, hygienists, and assistants who love what we do. We understand that people are people. No matter where you’re from, or what your socioeconomic background is, we all deserve respect, comfort and good health.
We know that by providing dental services to people who otherwise would not receive them, and doing so in a gentle and comfortable way, we can transform people’s lives and the way they view health care. Our mission is to continue our philanthropic efforts and build bridges between people of different backgrounds both at home and abroad.