For Dr. Theressa Eliscar-Hewett, it was the excitement of the young patients arriving at the Give Kids A Smile event that solidified her desire to be a dentist.

"You can't put that into words. It's a wonderful experience seeing how their faces light up and how excited they are to get the exam," she said.

Dr. Eliscar-Hewett, 29, began volunteering at the Nassau County Give Kids A Smile event in Long Island, New York, as a high school student while taking a dental assisting course at Joseph M. Barry Career & Technical Education Center. Although volunteering started off as a requirement for the course, she continues to volunteer more than 10 years later, only now as a dentist.

Give Kids A Smile will hold this year's national kickoff event Feb. 7 at the Indiana University School of Dentistry in Indianapolis. More than 6 million underserved children have received free oral health services through Give Kids A Smile since the program's national launch in 2003.