Christmas's rosy-cheeked, big-bellied, jolliest fellow, Ol' St. Nick, was the guest of honor last weekend at California Kids Dental and Orthodontics. The white-bearded toy giver visited the dental group to meet and greet with children and hear all their Christmas wishes during the inaugural "Santa Claus is Coming" event at the dental offices of Dr. Kevin Badii in Redlands. Though wet weather abounded, it did not deter visitors from Redlands and surrounding areas from spending a few hours visiting that morning and afternoon. Approximately 125 visitors came to sit with Santa, enjoy homemade baked treats and bountiful cups of hot cocoa. Tina Mills, a marketing specialist at California Kids Dental and Orthodontics, explained the group's inspiration behind the first-time event: the doctor they work for. "Dr. Badii, the owner, is really the driving force," she said. "He is very involved in the community." Since he arrived at the dental group in April of last year, the dental group has actively engaged itself in reaching out to the community it serves. The dental office has hosted several community-based events, one of the most recent being its Operation: Gratitude drive, where the office collected candy from resident children and sent the treats to serving members of the United States armed forces for the Halloween holiday. Drawing on the office's reputation for community giveback, the idea for the Christmas-themed event was the brainchild of both Mills and the office manager, Chrissi Kay-Willard, who birthed the idea after a nonchalant conversation about what the office could do for the children this holiday season. "We really strive to let people know that we're not just a dentist (office)," said Mills. "The word dentist can have a [negative] connotation to it, so we do these types of events and candy drives, these little things, to help connect with the community. We're not here just to drill your teeth and send you off — we want to be involved." Office staff donated their own funds to purchase goodies for the day, including hot chocolate and baked goods. Tents were set up outside to shield visitors from the rain that came down; but that didn't douse anyone's spirits. "Everyone was having a good time," said Mills. Additionally, the office, together, purchased a live six-foot Douglas Fir tree, which was raffled off to the family of Jessica Monrreal, a patient at the office. Jessica's mother, Elizabeth, brought her family to the event not expecting to win a tree out of it. "We were really happy and excited," said Elizabeth about winning the tree. She shared that she's taken the tree home but the family hasn't yet had the chance to decorate it. For Mills, the best part of the event was getting to hear the children tell Santa their Christmas wishes. "You could hear them say, 'Santa, I want,' 'Santa, I want.' And good, that's how it should be. That's what Christmas is about."

Santa Claus Meets and Greets at Childrens Dentistry Group