Humanitarian MT Receives Award

In many Third World countries, dental care is a luxury few can afford. That means that most babies born with cleft lip or palate go untreated, which can lead to a lifetime of compromised breathing, eating and hearing—and social isolation.

Enter Rotocleft, an organization that organizes groups of volunteer dentists, and support personnel, to perform free oral surgery on both children and adults.

In July a massage therapist who recently accompanied Rotocleft on such a trip was presented with Performance Health Inc.’s Humanitarian Award.

Eva Jones volunteered in Peru for 10 days, where she was the surgical team’s massage therapist. “My touch has improved and is even more meaningful to me with doing touch away from the massage table,” she said of her work there. “There are so many groups that do help others in need, and if one just makes themselves available to join, [they] receive so much joy and satisfaction.”

Rotocleft Founder and Mission Director Sandra J. Lilo, D.D.S., who is also Jones’s dentist and a fellow Rotarian, nominated Jones for the award. Jones received the award at the annual convention of the Florida State Massage Therapy Association (FSMTA) in Orlando in July. She has been a massage therapist since 1988, and practices in Seminole, Florida.

Performance Health is the maker of BioFreeze pain-relieving lotion, gel and spray.

— Karen Menehan