One of the main reasons why I applied to the St. Peterburg College dental hygiene program was because it was the only program at least in Florida that offered a study-abroad volunteering experience for their students. However, I was questioning applying near the deadline since school was very hectic and I work a part-time job, so I did not know if leaving for a little over a week would interfere with school grades and money coming in for my bills and stuff. Thankfully, on the last day for applying, I decided to do it because I had some savings just in case I needed them, but besides being one of the reasons why I wanted to come to SPC, I also benefited from something similar back in my country when I was a kid which made me want to do it more. Consequently, I was happily chosen to go and the group needed to start thinking about how to fundraise money to cover all of our expenses.
We were a group of nine girls, and our professor, Ms. Krueger, had a lot of creative ways to get money. Each one of us had to oversee a fundraising event, including four restaurant events, a school sale, a garage sale, a lumpia sale, a symposium table selling dental hygiene stuff, a couple of us applied for scholarships, and many people including family and friends donated money for our trip. All of us helped and collaborated in each event to reach our goal.
The experience overall was amazing, we arrived before the weekend started, so we had two days to enjoy the island and appreciate the opportunity. On Sunday, we had a mandatory meeting to discuss everything that was going to happen in the next couple of days and the different rules we had to follow. I had the opportunity to visit two of the sites twice which were the school and the jail. On my last day, I was in the staff clinic where we saw most of the patients and gave back to all of the staff people in the resort for their great service and care for us during our stay. Every day I learned so much, met many wonderful people, connected with my classmates, and practiced my skills as a soon graduate. Besides that, we enjoyed the resort’s restaurant and got to visit the straw market to buy souvenirs for me and my family.
As a learning experience, I take with me knowledge, teamwork, amazing memories, and the satisfaction that many people received dental care that they have never had. Leaving the Bahamas was a mix of emotions because I simply just wanted to keep doing it. Moreover, I am deeply grateful to have been chosen to do this and will be going back to the Bahamas or to another island that needs it soon as a registered dental hygienist.
– Ingrid, SPC Bahamas Dental Study Abroad Program, January 2025