Aspen Dental gives back with free service for veterans

Hundreds of Aspen Dental locations across the country donated their service and time Saturday to give veterans free dental care.

"It’s like the welcome home I never had," Allan Lea, U.S. Air Force Veteran, said. "We just came back and went back to normal life and no acknowledgment and so this is pretty awesome."

"There is a huge need from a dental perspective for those veterans who are left out because they cannot get coverage if they are not 100 percent disabled," Dr. Hassan Ismail, vice president of the Minnesota Board of Dentistry, said. "Being able to fill that gap is very fulfilling and amazing."

Local dentists told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS to check your calendars yearly around Veterans Day if you’re a service member as appointments book fast.

This is the seventh year in a row that Aspen has provided free care to those who’ve served around Veterans Day. Since 2014, they’ve provided more than $22 million in free dentistry to over 27,000 military men and women and plan to keep providing top-quality care annually.