Be A Friend… Pam Alston, DDS

Dr. Pam Alston, a regular supporter of the CDA Foundation, recently became a Five-Year Friend of the CDA Foundation, the annual gift club that begins at $1,000 per year or $85 per month. Why does she support the CDA Foundation at the Friend level?

Dr. Alston’s first exposure to the CDA Foundation was during a focus group asking participant’s opinions about current and future programs.
“I entered the focus group having already mentally spent the honorarium at Nordstrom but what I learned about the CDA Foundation’s vision and programs was so compelling that I left the focus group determined to plow that honorarium right back into the Foundation’s programs.”

As the dental director for Eastmont Wellness Center in Oakland, a safety-net clinic serving medical and uninsured patients, Dr. Alston has a passion and calling to help the underserved. “From the time I was in pre-dental school, I knew I wanted to practice in community health,” she said. “There was no way I could go into private practice and be successful – I would give everything away!” After hearing about the Foundation’s impact on lives and becoming a donor, Dr. Alston decided she wanted to become even more involved. “Not only did I make my first donation to the CDA Foundation in the amount of the focus group honorarium, but I also applied to serve on the CDAF Grant Selection Committee.  I wanted to contribute more than money and I felt that my experience as the dental director of a safety-net clinic would be useful,” noted Dr. Alston.  “Being a member of the committee is a bittersweet experience.  It is wonderful to be part of a group charged with evaluating the needs of grant applicants and making funding recommendations to the CDA Foundation.  But, it is heart-breaking to see needy programs not being awarded grants and worthy new graduates not receiving loan repayment awards simply because there are not enough available funds.”

Becoming a Friend of the Foundation
“I asked one of the Grant committee members, Dr. Rich Kao, who is also a UCSF classmate and a close friend, why he gives as Friend of the CDA Foundation.  “His reasons were compelling and influenced my decision as did my colleague Andy Soderstrom, DDS, whom I serve on the CDA Policy Development Committee. Andy challenged me to increase my giving level to become a Friend by matching my contribution.  Once I was a Friend, my mentor Dr. Newton Gordon handily called me up and convinced my husband and me to make a five-year commitment.  Thankfully, my husband appreciates my enthusiasm for the CDAF because the decision to become a Friend of the CDAF was a joint decision.”

Dr. Alston relays that the decision was not a hard one. She notes that she personally has been a recipient of CDA Foundation programs including the Pediatric Oral Health Access Program (POHAP). “As a result of POHAP, I am able to care for patients that I did not before the training.  Similar patients were referred previously to pediatric dentistry specialists and often they did not follow-up.  They fell through the safety-net re-emerging for urgent care. By giving back, particularly as a five year Friend, I feel like I am vicariously helping others through the CDA Foundation.”