Military spouses graduate dental assistant course

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Jeremy Larlee
  • JBER PAO
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --   Wednesday marked the end of six months of hard work for six Arctic Warrior Spouses as they graduated from the American Red Cross Dental Assisting Program.

The program, run by the 673d Dental Squadron, provided the spouses with about 800 hours of valuable on-the job training in numerous different specialties of dentistry.

Master Sgt. Eric Parcells, 673d Dental Squadron clinical flight chief, said that the Dental Clinic also benefits from the program because it adds extra personnel.

He said that the clinic has a shortage of enlisted personnel at the moment.

"They have such a big impact on our organization," he said "We wouldn't be able to keep dental readiness to the level we currently do. They have been an invaluable asset to us."

Parcells said the program at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson had been dormant for five years.

This is Parcells' second assignment here. He said that when he arrived here, he remembered what a benefit the program had been during his previous assignment in 1997-2001.

With the support of his dental clinic leadership, he was able to restart the program and the first class started in October.

"I thought it would be an awesome opportunity for the spouses," he said.

"They put up with so much being married to military members. They sometimes have to pack up with little notice and relocate.

It makes finding a job at their new assignment difficult."

Nicole Theilacker said her favorite part of the class is that it will make it easy for her to find work anywhere in the country.

"It is great because it is nationally certified," she said.

"So wherever our spouses get stationed we will be able to find a job."

She said the class has also been a great way to learn about her new community here.

"I have really enjoyed meeting people," she said. "I had only been here 6 months before I started the class. It has allowed me the chance to make a lot of friends and contacts."

Theilacker is wasting little time putting her knowledge to work. She already has interview lined up for new jobs.

"I'm very confident about my interviews," she said "We have had so much experience and knowledge pounded into our heads."

A new class is already in session to replace the graduating class. The graduating class has pitched in to help train the new recruits by teaching classes on basic anatomy and dental terminology.

Theilacker said that it has really brought home to her just how much she has progressed in six months.

"I didn't even know how much I had learned until the new class came in," she said. "The amount of information I was able to feed them was amazing."