Salem orthodontist provides free braces for kids in need
SALEM Ore. (KPTV) - A rainbow unicorn with braces is the newest addition to the Salem Riverfront Carousel, thanks to a Salem orthodontist who provides free braces for kids in need.
Dr. Cole Johnson at Johnson Family Orthodontics (JFO) offers a Unicorn Program which helps give free braces to foster kids and other kids in need.
“We would just say, ‘let’s put them in a Unicorn Program,’ and that was code for ‘I think we should do this for free,’” Johnson said.
JFO welcomed its first patient in Salem in 2011. Johnson said that since it started its Unicorn Program, 211 kids have benefitted from it.
While he loves all of his patients, Johnson said the Unicorn kids have a different kind of appreciation for their braces.
“I mean, they are the best patients,” he said. “They brush so well, they floss like nobody else does. Nobody else flosses anyways, but they’re just so conscientious about what it means because they know there’s no other way in which their families could do it.”
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It’s no secret that braces are expensive, typically costing a few thousand dollars, and are out of reach for many families. For foster families, Johnson said, braces are often a luxury they can’t afford for the children in their care.
Patients who benefitted from the Unicorn Program, like 15-year-old Priscilla Young, said it’s thanks to Johnson, his staff, and community donations that she gets to have a perfect smile.
“It feels really good. I feel like it makes me feel a lot more confident in myself too,” Young said. “I’m very thankful that... I had them as my orthodontist.”
On Saturday, JFO’s Unicorn Program was celebrated with the unveiling of its mascot, Spencer B. Sprinkles, at the Salem Riverfront Carousel. But to Johnson, the unicorn is more than just a mascot.
“Spencer B. Sprinkles [is] named after one of our very first unicorn patients. His name was Spencer and he has since passed,” Johnson said. “He was just a great symbol for what it stands for. He was an amazing young man who lit the fire under us.”
Complete with a rainbow mane, name tag, and mouth full of colorful braces, Sprinkles is hard to miss.
Johnson hopes the community learns to celebrate him, just like Johnson celebrates his patients.
“We as a community should seek out those special little unicorns and rally around them because many of them need a lot more help than they would ever let on,” Johnson said.
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