A trip to the dentist isn’t that bad when other kids are sitting in chairs on either side of you, and getting their teeth cleaned for free, too.

Luis Villanueva, 9, relaxed in his chair Saturday as two dental hygienists doted on him. They gave him red sunglasses to shade his eyes from the bright overhead light.

Villanueva had his teeth cleaned and sealant put on his molars as a part of a free service provided annually by the Benton Franklin Oral Health Coalition, said Dr. Larry Loveridge, who co-operates Columbia Basin Pediatric Dentistry.

About 130 kids, ages 14 and under, were treated Saturday at Columbia Basin Pediatric Dentistry and just down the street at Willamette Dental. Children who don’t have regular dental care were invited to sign up on a first-come, first-served basis to see a dentist.

Loveridge said children and their parents started lining up at about 6:45 a.m. to register for a seat in one of 30 dental chairs. He estimated the cost of services provided by the volunteers at about $50,000.

“This is the biggest community effort in this area,” he said.

Two shifts of 120 volunteers, including Tri-City dental school students, helped register patients and do cleanings, fillings, tooth abstractions and other work.

A small group of dental hygienists started the free dental day in 1991. The program evolved into an annual event sponsored by the Oral Health Coalition, said Brooke DuBois, Benton-Franklin Community Health Alliance executive director.

Columbia Basin was packed with kids and parents, waiting for their turn in a chair in the back office. There, televisions played footage of a monkey brushing its teeth and parents waited on benches.

Volunteers said they were impressed with their young patients, and were thankful for the chance to help them.

“I’m so excited,” said Karlee Cats, 18, who studies dentistry at the Tri-Tech Skills Center in Kennewick. “I’ve been waiting all morning to come.”

Cats observed hygienists as they helped Luis Villanueva keep still for his sealant procedure.

His mom, Maria Magdalena Negrete of Pasco, said she brought Luis and his younger brother Hector, 5, because she can’t afford a trip to the dentist.

“In Mexico, they don’t have programs like this,” she said in Span- ish, adding, “You have to pay.”

Guadalupe Pea also brought her two children, Noemi, 4, and Daniel, 7, for cleanings and a check-up after she heard about the service at Longfellow Elementary School in Pasco.

Volunteers let Noemi look at an X-ray slide of her teeth after she finished her cleaning. She laughed at the slide.

Other young patients needed more complicated procedures. Loveridge had to perform a root canal on a baby tooth of one child, and he also removed nine abscessed teeth from three siblings.

“They did great,” he said. “They were excellent patients.”

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