Ten-year associate at nation’s largest family-owned dental distributor delivers smiles – and oral health care insight — to students at Building Blocks Learning Center in Dallas, Pennsylvania.
PITTSTON, Pa. — August 15, 2019 — Unless it’s during a visit to the dentist, people rarely volunteer details on their toothbrushing and flossing habits. Not the case with the five and under crowd at Building Blocks Learning Center in Dallas, Pennsylvania. This summer, 26 students were more than willing to express their enthusiasm for dental hygiene, as well as love and admiration for the Benco Dental Tooth Fairy.
Resplendent in white attire with a glittering crown and wings, Pat Motyka, a Tooth Customer Service Specialist at the dental distributor’s home office in Pittston, entered a classroom at Building Blocks Learning Center on July 19.
Benco Dental Tooth Fairy Pat Motyka reads to four- and five-year old children in a classroom at Building Blocks Learning Center in Dallas, Pennsylvania. Shown, clockwise, from front, left: Annabell P., Jack W., Everett M., Noah C., Scarlett S., Tooth Fairy Pat, Ryleigh S. and Christopher M. (Benco Dental/Jimmy Musto)
While students were rushing to impress her with the frequency of their brushing and flossing routines, a particularly excited young girl raised her hand to tell the Tooth Fairy that she loved her. Two others, Delilah and Vijay showered their special guest with compliments about her “sparkly wings” and the gifts she presented them before she took flight: a take-home package for each student complete with a dental kit, stickers and other surprises.
“They know she’s real, rather than just their imagination. Seeing the Tooth Fairy in their class makes them think, ‘Oh, I have to brush my teeth, I have to make sure they’re healthy.’ They know that when they lose a tooth it’ll be OK; she’ll visit and keep their teeth safe,” said Brittany Palma, a teacher at Building Blocks.
Students intently listened and watched as the Larksville-based Tooth Fairy spoke to the importance of brushing and flossing, read two stories about dental hygiene, and distributed tooth-themed coloring sheets. Motyka offered students a hands-on experience by allowing them to brush the teeth of Finn, a plush shark puppet used for dental hygiene demos. Students were able to practice proper technique with an oversized toothbrush.
Benco Dental Tooth Fairy Pat Motyka recently visited Building Blocks Learning Center in Dallas, Pennsylvania and spoke to students about the importance of brushing and flossing. Shown is Tooth Fairy Pat, center, with students in the classrooms of teachers (clockwise, from bottom left) Brittany Palma, Kaitlyn Ayers and Jill Skurkis. (Benco Dental/Jimmy Musto)
Though new to the Tooth Fairy role, with just three classroom visits under her wings, Motyka brings 10 years of dental industry experience to her position at Benco Dental.
“Later that day, my coworker Dave Tosh (Benco Fleet and Logistics Manager) emailed me. His daughter was one of the Building Blocks students, and he said she couldn’t wait to come home to tell him about my visit. That made me feel really good,” said Motyka.
Aside from adding a little sparkle to their day, she feels her visits make a difference to the students’ oral health.
“A lot of parents don’t tell their kids about dental health — I know mine didn’t. I think it’s important, because that’s the first thing you see when you talk to someone: their teeth. Benco was kind enough to donate tooth gel, toothbrushes, and brushing charts for the dental kit,” she added.
For details, visit benco.com or call 1.800.GO.BENCO.
CAPTIONS:
- Benco_ToothFairy_Building Blocks_4387.jpg: Benco Dental Tooth Fairy Pat Motyka reads to four- and five-year old children in a classroom at Building Blocks Learning Center in Dallas, Pennsylvania. Shown, clockwise, from front, left: Annabell P., Jack W., Everett M., Noah C., Scarlett S., Tooth Fairy Pat, Ryleigh S. and Christopher M. (Benco Dental/Jimmy Musto)
- Benco_ToothFairy_Building Blocks_4270.jpg: Building Blocks student Lilly M. “brushes” teeth of of Finn, a plush shark puppet used for dental hygiene demos, brought to her classroom in Dallas, Pennsylvania by Benco Dental Tooth Fairy Pat Motyka. (Benco Dental/Jimmy Musto)
- Benco_ToothFairy_Building Blocks_4427.jpg: Benco Dental Tooth Fairy Pat Motyka recently visited Building Blocks Learning Center in Dallas, Pennsylvania and spoke to students about the importance of brushing and flossing. Shown is Tooth Fairy Pat, center, with students in the classrooms of teachers (clockwise, from bottom left) Brittany Palma, Kaitlyn Ayers and Jill Skurkis. (Benco Dental/Jimmy Musto)
About Benco Dental
Benco Dental, headquartered in Northeastern Pennsylvania, is the largest family-owned dental distributor in the United States, offering a full array of supplies, equipment and services to dentists across the nation. Founded in 1930 by Benjamin Cohen, the company has remained family-owned and focused on its unique mission to “deliver success, smile after smile.” Within the past 88 years, the company has grown from a single downtown location to a national network that includes five distribution centers, and three design showrooms, one at the company’s Pa. headquarters, one in Southern California, and one in Texas. Benco, which has been named one of Fortune Best Workplaces in Health Care and Biopharma for the past three years, one of the NAFE Top Companies for Executive Women for the second consecutive year, and Pennsylvania’s Best Places to Work® for 12 of the past 14 years, is proud to feature a highly skilled team of more than 400 professionally trained sales representatives and over 300 factory-trained service technicians. For more information, visit benco.com or call 1.800.GO.BENCO.
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Media Contact: Kristie Ceruti, Marketing Communications Specialist 570-602-7047 // kceruti@benco.com
