Well another trip to Arad has come to a successful end this week. We left on Sunday 10-14 and returned on Sunday 10-28. I, Dr. Steve Pfingsten, met David Bartlet (a brother in Christ I had only met once over breakfast in July) in Budapest on Monday the 15th. We took a van to Arad and arrived around 9PM at the Servant house. We slept soundly that night and began our mission work the next morning. Anton picked us up and we went to Petchka (I'm spelling phonetically so please forgive) a nearby town that has a nursing home in it that we had gone to last year. 

The residents were glad to see us and we saw several patients, doing extractions, cleanings and some fillings. As is our MO we also saw the staff members that had a need also. With average salaries of about $200/month and gas costs about $6/gal and food is the same price it is in the US dentistry is a luxury that most cannot afford. So the residents and staff both were appreciative of our services.

This year however God told me to go one step further. He said, "Give them a reason to smile Dr. Steve" I said, "Huh?" Further prayer led me to develop a make-shift dental lab to make dentures for these people. What a difference we could make in these peoples' lives if we could help them to eat properly, not to mention give them a reason to smile. So this year, I sent ahead in a container the necessary equip and supplies to make dentures, still not knowing how I was going to "pull the rabbit out of the hat" as a denture lab has to have electricity (which in Romania is 220V) air pressure (which would have to be worked out) a heat source, a work space, adequate lighting, and a lot of other things that we didn’t have readily available. But God provided every thing we needed and her name was Donna. Donna is a dental lab technician who happens to own a dental lab minutes from the Servant’s House. Her husband is a Baptist pastor and they love the Lord. Thanks to her, my dream of making dentures in Romania came true. God will always prove for us if we follow his direction. He is faithful to complete the good work he starts.

In the 2 weeks we were in Romania, this time, we visited 4 nursing homes and one village. We saw over 150 patients, and managed to fabricate 12 dentures and one partial. To give you some perspective, I don't make 12 dentures in 2 months in the US under ideal conditions. In fact, generally I send the denture to a lab tech and he does all the work; I usually just make the impressions and do the various fitting appts. as necessary. In fact, I usually see the patient 4 times to make a denture. Since time was a premium, I saw these patients only twice and had to do some of the lab work at the nursing homes in order to save trips back and forth as some of the homes were 2 hrs. away by car. God did provide. We would see patients from 9 to 5 and then I would go to Donna's and we would work side by side till 12 or 1 AM. Then we would do it again the next day. It was not easy, but we did it. I could never have done it without Donna's help or her facility. She was truly an angel from heaven. So was her family. They invited me to dinner one night toward the end of our trip. Her family was so precious and we talked for hours. They have 3 children. Their oldest daughter is there biological child, and they adopted a girl and a boy when they were about 6 years old. They are very active in the orphanages in Romania and that is how they met their other children. Their daughter is about 16 and their son is 12. His name is Christy and he captured my heart. What a great kid! One night I was not feeling too good and he took care of me like I was his best friend. He took my blood pressure about 4 times, my pulse, my temp, looked me over and said, "You need to rest, wait here and Ill get you my pillow." He disappeared and returned with the pillow off his bed. He told me to lie down and he would be back to check on me soon. He also made me promise to rest until he returned. Actually, I fell asleep in the chair I was in only to wake up and find Donna doing my work for me. What a blessing they were to me! Donna also volunteered her dental lab for my use next time. When God puts something together He does it right.

Our trip was very successful as I stated. Not only did we see the elderly and toothless. We also helped out a couple dozen children from a nearby village. We did fillings, exams, cleanings, extractions, and fluoride treatment. We passed out tooth brushes and paste. The people were so nice to us wherever we went. It was quite heartwarming.

In conclusion, I would like to encourage anyone who God is calling to mission work to be obedient and GO! Don’t wait .....just do it ....like the NIKE commercial. The blessing that I received was greater than ever before. God willing, I hope to return next year. Thank you and thank God for the opportunity to share with you my experience. Praise Be To God!!!

Dr. Steve Pfingsten