ETHERINGTON AWARD

Jeffrey E. Dodge, DMD

Yankee Dental Congress is pleased to present the prestigious 2018 Etherington Award to Dr. Jeffrey E. Dodge of Woonsocket, RI. This award is given annually in recognition of New England dentists who dedicate much of their professional lives to furthering the high ideals and objectives of organized dentistry. A graduate of Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, Dr. Dodge served as president of the Rhode Island Dental Association, as well as being an active Yankee Dental Congress volunteer, chairing numerous committees including Signs, Registration, and General Arrangements and serving as presiding chair, room coordinator, and hospitality volunteer. He is also a member of the Yankee Oversight Committee. He is a fellow of the American College of Dentists, the Pierre Fauchard Academy, and the International College of Dentists. Dr. Dodge currently serves as chairman of the Board of Examiners in Dentistry, parliamentarian of the RIDA House of Delegates, and is the major force behind the Rhode Island Mission of Mercy that cares for over 800 citizens at each event. Dr. Dodge, a 2016 Armen Nalband volunteer award winner, maintains a private practice in Woonsocket and enjoys golf, travel, and time with his family.

 CLINICIAN OF THE YEAR AWARD

  David Keith, DMD

Dr. David Keith, a 2017 William McKenna Volunteer Hero, has served as lecturer presenting pain management for dentists over 20 times during the past four years at Yankee Dental Congress, Yankee Institute, and for constituent dental societies. He co-chaired the Governor’s Dental Education Working Group on Prescription Drug Abuse. Dr. Keith has been a professor of oral and maxillofacial surgery at Harvard School of Dental Medicine for the past 45 years and is a visiting oral and maxillofacial surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston. He also has authored more than 100 articles, reviews, and book chapters. Originally a native of the U.K., Dr. Keith came to Boston to take part in an internship program at MGH. He received his BDS from the University of London and his DMD from Harvard University. He resides in Marblehead, MA.

 ELIZABETH A. BAER ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

  Roberta Flynn, CDA

Roberta Flynn has been a CDA for more than 25 years. For the past two decades, she has volunteered at every Yankee Dental Congress as a room coordinator or presiding chair. She has been a member of Massachusetts Dental Assistants Association, American Dental Assistants Association, and the Dental Assisting National Board for the past 25 years. Ms. Flynn currently works as a CDA at Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine.

 HYGIENIST OF THE YEAR AWARD

 Paula Morrison, RDH

Paula Morrison has been actively involved in the MDHA for close to a decade, first serving as the membership chair and then stepping into officer roles including president of the Association. A graduate of Quinsigamond Community College Dental Hygiene Program and Worcester State University, Ms. Morrison is also a proud member of the American Dental Hygiene Association. She is currently employed at the Fitchburg Community Health Center, working in the Caring for Kids Dental Program. Ms. Morrison resides in central Massachusetts with her husband and two daughters.

 JOHN GOLDEN AWARD

 Lisa Vouras, DMD

Dr. Lisa Vouras has been an enthusiastic Yankee volunteer for nearly 20 years. She earned praise for her hard work and dedication as General Chair of Yankee in 2016. She has also chaired several Yankee committees over the years, including the Interprofessional Symposium, Professional Relations, and Allied & Scientific. She is a fellow of the American College of Dentists and the International College of Dentists and has served on the MDS Board of Trustees. Dr. Vouras owns and maintains a private practice in Reading, MA.

 ARMEN NALBAND AWARD

  Geraldine Garcia-Rogers, DMD

Chair of the Dental Practice Committee and a member of the Massachusetts Dental Society since 1997, Dr. Geraldine “Gigi” Garcia- Rogers has been an active Yankee volunteer for many years. She has chaired several committees, including General Arrangements, Hospitality, Registration, and Dental Practice. In addition, she has served as a member of the Yankee Oversight Committee as well as a past MDS guest board member. Dr. Garcia-Rogers is a fellow of the Pierre Fauchard Academy and the International College of Dentists as well as a diplomat of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. A Tufts University School of Dental Medicine and University of Michigan School of Dentistry graduate, Dr. Garcia-Rogers is a partner and pediatric dentist in Winchester, MA.

 VIVIAN CHAPUT AWARD

 Joanne Swiderski, RDH

Joanne Swiderski has been an active Yankee volunteer in the Social and Cultural program for nearly twenty years. She has also served as chair of the Social and Cultural committee, as well as room coordinator and presiding chair. Ms. Swiderski worked as a dental hygienist until 1990, at which time she earned a Master's Degree in Health Care Administration. She is currently the Director of Community Relations and Education at Whittier Rehabilitation Hospital in Westborough, MA. She and her husband, MDS Past President Dr. Edward Swiderski, reside in Westborough, MA.

 VOLUNTEER AWARD FOR AUXILIARIES

  Kathy Lituri, RDH

Yankee is pleased to honor Kathy Lituri, a devoted volunteer since the earliest days of Yankee Dental Congress. Over the years, Ms. Lituri has served as presiding chair, room coordinator, speaker, and student poster contest judge. For more than a decade, she has been instrumental in staffing and helping to staff the HIV Dental Booth on the exhibit hall floor with Boston University volunteers. Ms. Lituri is currently a clinical instructor and the Oral Health Promotion Director for the Office of Global and Population Health at Boston University Henry M. Golden School of Dental Medicine, where she oversees numerous community-based programs targeted to the underserved in the Boston area. She holds a BS in Management from Lesley College as well as an MPH from Boston University School of Public Health.