Charitable group in North Bend wants to see the world smile

Published 11:22 am Thursday, October 2, 2008

NORTH BEND – North Bend’s newest neighbor has met witch doctors, avoided a spear to the heart by just inches and dined with state dignitaries wearing only loin cloths.

But that’s nothing compared to the lives dentist Sherwin Shinn has saved with the help of his wife, Jerri.

The two world-traveled humanitarians recently moved their office to North Bend. “Smile Power Foundation” is located in a scarcely-noticeable warehouse behind Davis Chiropractic on North Bend Way.

The Shinns started the foundation 12 years ago after hiking through Nepal. They came across children who were dying due to tooth decay and gum disease simply because they had no toothbrushes.

“I couldn’t pretend I didn’t see that,” said Shinn, who lives with his wife in Sammamish. “It [poor oral hygiene] kills people, especially little kids living in a harsh environment with little nutrition.”

So the Shinns decided to try and help stop the easily preventable deaths by bringing toothbrushes and modern dental care to nations like Nepal. Shinn quit his booming private practice in Issaquah to travel to some of the poorest and most remote corners of the earth to help people take care of their teeth.

As if saving their lives weren’t enough, Shinn also reminds the children, many of whom are orphans, that they have friends who care about them in the United States. Shinn has spread awareness of the oral woes of foreign children at local schools where he has students make necklaces using their own photos and decorate T-shirts to send abroad.

“It gives them an immense amount of fulfillment to make a difference in someone’s life,” Shinn said.

Shinn notes that for a child who has nothing and no adults who care about them, receiving a special gift from a friend in another country can be a momentous event.

“They never forget that. It’s a life-changing event,” Shinn said. “The light turns on in their eyes because they see that, yes, someone cares about me. I’m important.”

In 2003, the Shinns’ efforts won them the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Award for public service, one of the nation’s highest honors for humanitarian work. The award is given annually to only five of the 15,000 who are nominated.

The awards dinner the Shinns went to was attended by movie stars, national media representatives and many dignitaries. Sherwin said he and Jerri just sat in the back, afraid to eat and in awe of others who had been nominated.

“To be in that company … with those who try to help people that no one else would dare help is pretty empowering,” Shinn said. “We’re just doing it because we love it, it’s easy and fun … it’s overwhelming to get that kind of recognition for something we totally love.”

The Shinns have traveled to countries in the South Pacific, Nepal, Micronesia, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Zambia and many other places. They’ve met many different people, but maybe the most memorable person was young Alfonso Escalera from Bolivia. The boy with a severe spinal deformity would have eventually died as his body grew, but several local students Shinn had spoken to decided to change that.

“He was the greatest kid, all kids are great but there was something special about his charisma,” Shinn said of Escalera.

When a group of local students saw a photo of Escalera and learned of his condition during one of the slide shows Shinn presents to schools, they didn’t want him to die so young. Bolivia wouldn’t let the boy out of the country so the students wrote hundreds of letters to the Bolivian government, local doctors and airlines. Eventually all three complied and Escalera was flown to Seattle for free to receive a special surgery.

Shinn said the great thing about kids is that they don’t care about culture and race, they see other kids as being just like them.

“They don’t care,” Shinn said. “They project themselves onto other kids. They say, that’s me, what can we do to help?”

The Shinns have been paying Escalera’s tuition at a special bilingual school in Bolivia since he returned home. After meeting Escalera, his teachers agreed the boy had a special spark and perhaps will one day be a great leader for his people.

“It’s so interesting that this happened,” Shinn said. “All the kids who helped save his life will know they saved his life forever.”

When he first got out of dental school, Shinn got a job in a clinic for low-income kids in Seattle. When he took the job he was not planning on exclusively working with kids for any length of time.

Thirteen years later, Shinn started a private practice in Issaquah initially just for children and expanded it to adults once Issaquah started growing during the 1980s. Despite his talent with kids, Shinn is not a children’s specialist, even though he’s focused on children most of his career.

“I believe every single person, regardless of age, has the potential to become a leader. You never know which one of those kids will grow up to be the most important leader the world’s ever had. You have to treat everyone like they’re the one.”

* The annual Smile Power fund-raising gala will take place Feb. 12 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Bellevue. The “Evening of Smiles” will include dinner, a variety show and an auction. Smile Power hopes to raise $110,000 for equipment and shipping costs. Tickets cost $125 and the evening starts at 5:30 p.m. The Shinns will be joined by Pat Cashman, the Sea Gals and other celebrities. Visit www.smilepower.org to purchase tickets and R.S.V.P.