Mauricio Leyva reclined in a dentist chair, his mouth wide open and his eyes stuck on the Nickelodeon television show playing in front of him.

It was the 10-year-old's second visit to the dentist in his life.

"You have beautiful teeth, but you have to take care of them, okay?" said Dental Hygienist Michele Zapata-Sotelo as she taught Mauricio how to floss.

He nodded his head.

With an X-ray, the hygienist discovered two of Mauricio's molars needed surface fillings.

His was one of the less-severe cases seen Saturday in Dr. Christopher Go's office at a free dental clinic for children of low-income families in the Santa Clarita Valley.

"I had a kid who is 6 years old and never been to a dentist before," said Go, of Go Dental in Valencia. "Every single tooth in his mouth is either going to need a root canal or an extraction."

Local charter-member dentists of the "Smile Coalition" have come together with the local Foundation for Children's Dental Health to serve 50 pre-identified children with no access to dental care and resources in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Go and his staff - along with the help of Drs. Rose Kim and Carla Abboud - provided the initial cleanings and X-ray diagnoses. In coming weeks, Drs. Amy Monti of Adventure Dental, Kathleen Siu and Dean Schweitzer will join the effort, donating thousands of dollars and their time to treat the children's dental problems.

Go said he typically likes to see patients twice a year, beginning at age three. But that is not an option for families like Mauricio's.
Juana Leyva, Mauricio's mother, could not say how long it would be before she took him to the dentist again. She and her husband work hourly wage jobs and have no dental coverage for their five children.

"I wish they had something like this (clinic) for adults," said Leyva, of Canyon Country, through a Spanish translator.

Until Saturday, Bryan Torres, 13, was not aware that he had a potentially serious problem in his mouth.

"He has a baby tooth that didn't come out all the way," Go said. "So he has two teeth in that area which could cause infection."
The Newhall teen will soon have the tooth extracted.

"That's the type of thing we can take care of now before he has to go to the emergency room and it saves everybody money," Go said.