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Alumni and students had an opportunity to get to known one another at the Live@5 event (Nick Pearce photos)

Reconnecting with old classmates and faculty members was what DentDays 2024 was all about. And that’s exactly what happened in the Dentistry Building on October 25-26 as classmates met up, shared stories and memories, and celebrated.
 
This year’s event contained many of the hallmark activities from last year’s inaugural DentDays: special lunches for our Golden Grads – the 50th anniversary classes – with the dean or director of the School of Dental Hygiene, CE Day, Outstanding Alumni Award presentations, and a Maritime kitchen party.
 
Something old and something new
But there were new events, too. This year, for the first time, the 25th anniversary classes – the Silver Grads – also enjoyed special lunches with the dean or director of the School of Dental Hygiene, and the Friday night Live@5 event, hosted by the Faculty of Dentistry Student Society, attracted a crowd of over 140 people eager to relive their student days. Also popular was the Reunion Hub where alumni could look through archival photos and books.
 
A celebration event for Dr. Frank Lovely (DDS’59), this year’s recipient of the Dalhousie Golden Eagle Lifetime Achievement Award, which was held in the Dentistry Building on October 24, helped to attract alumni back to campus this year.

l to r: Dr. Ben Davis, dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, Krysti Campbell (DDH'13), Dr. Linda Blakey (DDS'89), Denise Zwicker, chair of the DAC committee

Impressive OAA recipients
At the Outstanding Alumni Award ceremony, held on Saturday evening, classmates and supporters were on hand to celebrate with Dr. Linda Blakey (DDS’89) and Krysti Campbell (DDH’13), this year’s recipients. Receiving the award was important to them both.
 
"It means a lot to me," said Blakey, who was also celebrating the 35th anniversary of her class, several members of which were in the audience.
 
"Thirty-five years ago, I thought I would work as dentist only," she said. "But then I joined a NLDA committee with colleagues in St. John’s and found it was a good way to give back." It would be the first of many committees and leadership roles Blakey would take on during her career.
 
Volunteering as a dentist in Honduras and helping to set up and manage the dental clinic at The Gathering Place community health centre in St. John’s, soon followed. These activities have been "an important piece of my dental career," Blakey said.
 
Krysti Campbell lives and works in The Bahamas and enjoys an extraordinary career that blends clinical practice with teaching and an extensive range of volunteering activities.
 
"This award means more to me than words can say," said Campbell, "and I am deeply humbled."
 
She said that her time at the Dalhousie dental school "played a pivotal role in my undergraduate and professional journey" and that she gives a lot of credit to the calibre of the training she received.
 
Campbell also said that she received more than just education at Dalhousie. "I also gained a sense of purpose and responsibility." She said that working on a small island, it was deeply significant to her that her "work was meaningful for this award."
 
A Kitchen Party in The Grawood after the OAA ceremony brought the official events of the evening – and the DentDays weekend – to a close.
 
Looking ahead to 2025
Please mark your calendars for DentDays 2025, which will take place on October 17-18. We’re encouraging all milestone classes – every five years – to celebrate with us, and we have other changes to the agenda planned. Watch out for a special edition of The Current in January. It will have more information on DentDays, photos, and nomination information for the alumni awards.