Father and son team realize dream of ILAC service, together
Flushing toilets with a 5-gallon bucket of water. Needing an English-to-Spanish translator to serve his Dominican patients and then a Spanish-to-Creole translator to tend to his Haitian ones. Wichita native TJ Foley, DDS’94, definitely was not in Kansas anymore.
And he loved every minute of it.
This past summer, the Creighton dental alumnus spent three weeks in the Dominican Republic with the ILAC Summer Health Program, Creighton’s flagship inter-disciplinary medical program that brings together dental, medical, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy and pharmacy students to serve rural populations in the DR.
One of the dental students was D4 student Mac Foley, TJ’s son.
It was the first trip for both Foleys. TJ had applied as a dental student but, much to his disappointment, was unable to participate in the three-week summer program. “When Mac said he wanted to apply, I instantly felt God tapping me on the shoulder, whispering, ‘Still interested?’, like He was telling me ‘Thanks for waiting. How about you go with your son!’” TJ says.
“I was so excited that I missed the part where God said, ‘This experience will change your life forever.’”
A clinical experience like no other
Dental students conduct most of the clinical work, relying on seasoned dentists for advice and to troubleshoot complicated cases. TJ was conscious of overstepping, helping when he shouldn’t. He needn’t be. The students took the lead, often tackling cases that were new to them—and doing so in a make-shift clinic.
Sharing this kind of seminal service experience with his son was immensely gratifying for TJ. “It was so rewarding to show them different techniques and watch Mac and the rest of the team perform the procedures like veterans,” TJ recalls. “I told them how, showed them a little, then they did the rest. They were amazing.”
The students spent over two weeks in the Mata Gorda campo, located in the Jarabacoa province. They cared for 189 patients, performing fillings, extractions and cleanings; fashioning removable partial dentures; and providing oral hygiene instruction. To illustrate the breadth of their impact, the team’s work in the campo would have totaled $32,949 if it had been completed in the School of Dentistry clinic, says Mac.
“I was proud and excited to be working alongside my dad and fellow classmates,” he continues. “To see my dad in his element, teaching and also pushing us to become better dentists, was something I enjoyed.”
Ever since Mac was a D1 student, participating in the ILAC Summer Health Program was something that called to him. Doing it with his dad made the profound experience even more meaningful.
“I thought it would be great to experience a completely different culture and way of life, to learn from and work with my dad and also to share what I’ve learned with my dad and the people of Mata Gorda,” says Mac.
Long days rooted in community and reflection
Father and son quickly discovered that there is no 9-5 in the DR.
After breakfast, the entire clinical staff—dentists, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, translators— would walk half a mile to the elementary school that would serve as their clinic to set up for the day. They saw patients in the morning and then spent their afternoons providing educational talks, or “charlas,” and interacting with their host families. Evenings were often spent gathering as a community to share a meal, play games and listen to music. And in true Ignatian fashion, daily reflection was integral to community living.
“Some days we would have meetings where we went around the room and shared our best/worst session of our day,” TJ says. “This usually involved a lot of tears…or at least it did for me.”
The sounds of the DR are what really stand out for TJ: rain pounding on his tin roof so loudly that he and his roommate had to shout to converse; domino tiles slamming down on wooden tabletops, signifying the player’s certain victory; prayers sung in Spanish before meals; the cry of a scared child undergoing necessary dental work.
For Mac, picking just one or two significant memories is impossible; he found the composite compelling: “It was every moment—our ILAC group from Creighton working with and for the people of Mata Gorda, finding in themselves more, giving more and making more out of the experience by sharing time, after hours, with locals, playing games and listening to music.”
Learning and serving through ILAC
But that is what ILAC is all about, Mac believes. Holistic in its approach, the program blends medical services that tend to patients’ corporeal needs while building student skills and confidence with cultural connections that foster communion through music, dance, prayer, food and games.
Founded in 1972, ILAC’s mission is to promote the physical, emotional and spiritual development of the people it serves and employs. It initially focused on medical programs before expanding into educational and agricultural programming. Today, in addition to the ILAC Summer Health Program, there is the ILAC Water Quality Program, Encuentro Dominicano semester abroad program, rotations for both the physical therapy and occupational therapy programs, a surgical and medical program as well as a high school immersion program.
In the past five years, Creighton healthcare students have served more than 15,000 patients in rural clinics like those in Mata Gorda, and more than 5,000 students, volunteers and healthcare workers have participated in ILAC programming.
A Creighton legacy of dentistry and service
Creighton and service have long been part of the Foley family. TJ’s dad graduated from the School of Dentistry in 1960. His younger brother followed suit in 1995. That Mac would continue the tradition of becoming a Creighton dentist seemed natural. And that Mac and TJ could work side-by-side in the DR, using their skills to make others’ lives better, was one of the best ways to share the gift of their Creighton education.
“My dad has always donated his talent and skills to underserved populations in need of dental work—just like his father did—and I just wanted to experience that as well. To see the good that we did and to see how much it meant to the people of Mata Gorda was all that mattered.”
You don’t have to be a dentist, like the Foleys, to live the Jesuit value of men and women for and with others, says Mac. Just “share your gift with those who need it and inspire as many people as you can to do the same,” he says.
Like father, like son.
Feel called to serve through your education? Learn more about Creighton University’s ILAC Summer Health Program and discover how students, alumni and professionals put faith, learning and service into action in the Dominican Republic.
