Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Dentistry primitive in Honduras

For the average person, a trip to the dentist is viewed with fear and trepidation.

This isn't the case in the Honduras, though, as Gurdon's Rotary Club learned at its weekly meeting, Thursday, Dec. 11.

Dr. William Roy Capps, son of Austin Capps, told the club members how things are with the dental mission he helps operate in the Honduras.

In spite of the primitive conditions, he said, the children line up to get their teeth worked on. In fact, the children have to be sent back to school and told they will be called when it's their turn.

What makes it rough there, he said, is the lack of electricity. Imagine going to the dentist and him not having electricity to run the drill for fillings, yet the Honduran people look forward to their visits to the dentist.

When it rains dentistry is even harder, he said, because the people close the wooden shutters over the windows, making it pitch dark inside. However, the mission has worked and installed glass windows where the dental work is done to provide light during rainy days.

Capps said his group asked the residents of the area if they wanted a clinic. He said their approval meant a nurse would be visiting the community once a week. The residents were supportive of the idea and allowed the clinic to be built.

The people were also asked if they wanted a community center. Again, approval was given and the center built. It has been a place, Capps said, where some of the mission work is done.

The missionaries have shown films on the life of Jesus, Capps said, and have worked at providing Bible study in the homes of the residents. Currently, the group is doing Bible study in eight homes.

According to Capps, the Hondurans are hungry for the word. "I've seen 118 people in a room smaller than eight by twelve."

An Alcoholics Anonymous group from another area asked the missionaries if they could speak to the people and were given permission to do their work in the region as well.

"I feel we have our foot in the door," Capps said. "I'm thankful for the privilege and honor of being there."