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News 12 Staff

927spotlightnj2_2025-09-27-12-54-21

My guest is the founder of Mao's Matter. Her name is Sophiahrto. We're going to talk about that organization right now. How did that whole thing get started and where did the idea come from? Right, so I was doing a lot of shadowing in Fort Lauderdale and I noticed that a lot of the patients didn't have, didn't have access to or weren't using simple things like a toothbrush, toothpaste that weren't flossing either they didn't have those items or they didn't know how important it was and now they were kind of suffering the consequences of it. Um, and so I wanted to take action in my community and that's when I decided to do Mouths Matter, so I held a couple of fundraisers, one of them being a volleyball tournament where I got together my peers and we were able to raise a couple $100 like about $400 so that I could order and assemble dental hygiene kits and then I donated that to the local homeless shelter called Hope South Florida. Yeah it was a really meaningful experience and overall the mission of the organization is to just help those vulnerable communities to educate them and also to provide them with these resources so that they can avoid these preventable diseases and I'm looking at all these pictures and. With posters tell me about that yeah so I'm a part of Razors Edge Global. It's a scholarship program at my university. Um, it really stresses like global engagement and I did this project as a sentiment to that and I was able to present it at our impact symposium, um, all the effects of it and how it impacted the. The all the people that you're helping yeah yeah so yeah it was a really meaningful experience for sure and I even got to talk to the president, uh, Doctor George Hanberry, president of my university about it and I was awarded for it as well so yeah it was a really meaningful experience not only for being not because of the recognition. But because of all the individual lives I got to effect and when you look at the lives that you are touching, are you talking about people of all ages? Yeah, yeah for sure it's I'll say the demographic there most of the people I handed them out the bags out to were were older, but they were also taking bags for their children. And that's so important to start that at a young age so it really was like such a big group of people and I handed out over 300 bags, so that's so many families that hopefully their lives were changed for the better and maybe their oral hygiene was improved.

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927spotlightnj3_2025-09-27-12-59-01

Oh Those kids are just adorable. Sophiahto is my guest. She is the founder of Mao's Matter. Tell people about the videos and your experience in Peru. That's where this was shot. Yeah, so I did a mission trip to Peru where I was able to provide dental care to rural families in Cusco and. That video was just me playing with the kids um our clinic was built right outside of an elementary school, so most of the patients were those little children so not only did I get to you know help clean their teeth and fill their cavities, but also get to really get to know them and they were the sweetest, most precious things. This video is like just a day in my life while we were volunteering. We were with the host family which was really special um they were so sweet and this is a volunteering that's what the clinic kind of looks like a very important lunch and then yeah we're just continuing to volunteer throughout the day yeah so it was a really special experience and it really reaffirmed my passion for dentistry in that way and especially with these kids unfortunately a lot of them. Um, the oral hygiene was pretty poor. Like their mouths were, um, full of decay at such a young age, and it's something that I've honestly never seen here in the United States and it's not like that parents were negligent or anything it's just honestly a lack of resources, a lack of dentists, and that's why I really wanted to not only just impact this community for two weeks but expand it more than that. I wanted to help them even after I leave so I really can. Connect with them in that way. Tell me more about that about that clinic you all built and what it offers. Yeah, so we had 3 dentists there and we were all rotating through assistings doing sterilization, vitals, had to work on my Spanish quite a bit. I'm hoping it's a little bit better now and only like 10 years of taking classes, but yeah, so we were seeing patients all day long, hundreds of patients, um, and we would just treat, you know, the most. Whatever needed the most attention first, and then we'd have to send them on their way. There's just so many people that needed treatment, so it was really rewarding and and seeing so many people and getting to help them, but also at the same time I wanted so badly to help them even more like my work was not done.

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928spotlightnj4_2025-09-28-09-04-08

Dentistry as we know plays a big role in how you feel about yourself. Sophia Shrtog is a pre-dental student. She's also the founder of Mao's Matter. Tell us about your next project. You went to Peru. Yeah. You love giving back so tell us, what are you up to next? Right, so I now I kind of want to do a culmination of the both of uh of these community service projects I've been involved with. I've really seen the need not only in South Florida but globally now so I'm partnering with a club at my school like International Volunteer HQ and now I'm going to be building dental hygiene kits but I'm gonna be sending them with the. Volunteer groups that are going to these different countries, um, so in December they're going to Costa Rica so I'm hoping that I can assemble like 500 kits and that these students are gonna be able to give them to these children and and families that are in need um obviously it's gonna hopefully really help these families but also it's so meaningful for the students to give back to them and know that after they leave there's still some kind of change happening in their lives, uh, for the better. It takes money. To get the supplies for these kids, what kind of help are you getting? Yeah, so I'm just trying to do as many fundraisers as I can. I'm probably gonna do another, um, like volunteer, I'm another like volleyball fundraiser, but I'm also, I also have a GoFundMe, um, if anyone wants to donate to that what is that? Um, it's a Ms. You can look it up and um I can give a, give a link as well and yeah any any of the proceeds will go towards buying all. Of the materials needed for these kids so the toothbrushes, the floss, um, the paste, and also I'm making informational packets on how to brush your teeth, why it's important, etc. obviously in Spanish as well so that these families know what to do and hopefully this can reduce the amount of pain and discomfort that they're going through. And when you don't have proper dental care, we know the pain. What are the family's reactions to your assistance? Um, do they love this? They, yeah, I mean they're so obviously so receptive and so grateful for it. Um, when I got to do it in Florida it was a super rewarding experience and same with Peru like everyone. so appreciative and grateful and I'm just thinking this is the least that I can do so I just wanna keep giving back as much as I can because I'm so privileged to be in this position and I and I really want other people to receive the care that I've received my whole life.

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928spotlightnj6_2025-09-28-09-17-43

Take a look at this logo, Mao's Matter. It was founded by Sophia Shirttog who is sitting here with me. What lessons have you learned by running this organization and how long have you had it? Yeah, so I think that health care in general dental health care, medical health care and people's lack of access to it is such a daunting problem it's huge it's all over this country and it's all over the world and I think it can be really intimidating when trying to tackle that, um. I learned that every small action matters that even though I can't maybe I can't help 7 billion people, but the few 100 or maybe 1000 people that I can help, that's one that's each person's life is changed for the better, so. I think that I really took a way that I can make a difference and that I can rally my community make a difference, and I really encourage everyone to do that that don't be scared by how big a problem is if you are passionate about it and you wanna make a change, then take that first step and people will follow. And that's exactly what you did. How did you come up with the name? um, well. Because when you're when you're going through a crisis or you're impoverished, you can't you don't know how you can't even you don't even know if you're gonna be able to pay your next bills or your pay for groceries, etc. your mouth is kind of your last priority understandably, um, you have so many other worries at that point, so I kind of thought of this as a way to say. Your mouth does matter and it's it's gonna catch up and it's gonna cause more problems in the end and so just a way to remind people to take care of it so that it doesn't end up becoming a disease. It's all preventable at the end of the day or for the most part, so I just wanted to emphasize that it matters and that I'm here to help people prioritize it as much as I can. They don't realize how much it does affect the rest of your health of your body. 100% and it affects your confidence to your quality of life. You're not able to be yourself, go to job interviews, etc. like it plays a huge role on your health as well. um, it affects everything, so it matters in so many ways and I and I've firsthand the impact of it. And when you look at that person, smile, right, the whole room lights up the community becomes brighter when we're all smiling.

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928SPOTLIGHTNJ6FIXED_2025-09-28-12-26-43

Sophiahtog is the founder of Mao's Matter. She's also an NSU pre-dental student. You've been doing a lot as we've been discussing here in Spotlight to give back here in our country and abroad. What's next for you? Well, as I mentioned, I'm applying to dental school now, and I should be hearing back shortly and next year when I'm in school, I'm hoping that I can go back to these countries and go back to these communities and impact them firsthand, not be the person assisting but hopefully the person providing that care. I'm really excited to continue. Project and I think that my university will continue it as well and I encourage anyone else if they would like to join to let me know and we can also have other schools and other participants if we all you know come together I think we can make a huge change. Do you have a link where people can reach out for more information and send you supplies if they'd like to? Yeah, um, definitely there is an Instagram called Mouths Matter and you can just look that up and send me a message. How do you balance school and giving back? Um, It's all, it's all uh. Yeah, it's all a balance yeah it is really like just my, my Google calendar like every hour is planned out and when you really care about something you make time for it at the end of the day like it doesn't feel like I'm. Balancing or prioritizing or anything because when I'm really passionate about my studies and passionate about giving back it just doesn't feel like work to me. Yeah, yeah, you remind me so much of her mom who is Doctor Robert. Yes, physically she definitely does, and of course in the mannerisms and in your commitment and passion to give back. Thank you. Do you all have conversations about this, what you share in terms of this industry? Yeah, 100%. I think a big inspiration too was her always coming home and telling me about her patients and telling me about the struggles that they've been through and how they like overcome them. Like she's such a people person and so am I and just I've learned so much from her patients and they don't. Even know that like how much they give back to their community. I look up to so many of them and they don't even know I exist so I've learned so much from it and I think that we are both really passionate about helping people and that's what we really bond over and um I hope one day I can be the woman that she is. What beautiful words.

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Sophia Chertog joins News 12’s Della Crews to discuss her experience helping people with dental work in Peru.

Spotlight New Jersey: Mouths Matter

Sophia Chertog joins News 12’s Della Crews to discuss her experience helping people with dental work in Peru.

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