WATSONTOWN -- At 7 a.m. on the dot, the phone line opened at Dr. Carl Jenkins' dentist office in Watsontown. That's when veterans were able to call for first-come, first-served free appointments.
"Seven o'clock this morning we were on the phone dialing. It probably took about ten minutes to get through. Whoever answered the phone probably heard us in the background yelling, 'we got it!'"
Ron Hinkley Jr. made an appointment for his father to get a crown put on. Ron Hinkley Sr. is a Korean War veteran who needed the dental work but worried about the cost.
"I think it's a very good deal for me because we were talking a quite a bit of expense," said Ron Hinkley Sr.
"He's 85 years old and he's on a fixed income. Any money that we can save him makes it easier for him," added Ron Hinkley Jr.
Dr. Carl Jenkins is a veteran himself. So is his father.
"Everybody does something free for veterans, why don't you do something? I thought, 'yes, this would be a great way to honor my father.'"
This is the third year Dr. Jenkins has done this event, and this time he's able to see 13 vets.
The veterans tell Newswatch 16 they could not be happier about the free dental work.
"When I heard about this I said I really need to get in because I really can't afford this right now," said Eldridge Valteau.
The last time Dr. Jenkins held this event, he did more than $7,000 in free dental work.