Citizen Staff Writer

DAVID L. TEIBEL

dteibel@tucsoncitizen.com

A woman was injured Thursday morning in a house fire, but a firefighter was unscathed by debris from the home’s collapsing roof.

Four dogs found in the backyard of the East Side home escaped serious injury, Tucson fire Capt. Tricia Tracy said. A fifth dog that had been missing was found unharmed late Thursday morning running around the yard.

The pets may have saved themselves by fleeing through a “doggy door” leading to the backyard. Tracy could not tell whether the dogs were singed or just sooty from the fire’s smoke and debris.

Tracy couldn’t provide more information on the injured 64-year-old resident because of a federal patient confidentiality law.

The fire, reported at 8:29 a.m., spread from the home in the 2800 block of South Palm Springs Drive to a neighboring house, Tracy said. The cause is under investigation.

Tracy said the firefighter appeared to be unharmed, but he was sent to a hospital for a precautionary exam. None of the other roughly 50 firefighters sustained injuries.

The fire gutted the first home, causing an estimated $300,000 damage, she said. A sprinkler system in the second home halted the progress of the blaze, which caused about $50,000 of damage there.

East Side fire injures woman; five dogs rescued

Citizen Staff Writer

Members of the Washington DC Club at Magee Middle School, 8300 E. Speedway Blvd., put the finishing touches Wednesday on their scale model of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. About 80 club members will travel to Washington next week for tours of the mall and visits to Williamsburg and Jamestown in Virginia. They’ve met repeatedly to plan the trip with social studies teachers and trip coordinators Marjorie Letson and Crystal Wilson. To see the model, call Magee at 731-5000.

Citizen Staff Writer

Bark Busters franchise owner and professional dog trainer Gerard Raneri added the rest of Tucson and also Catalina, Marana, Oro Valley and SaddleBrooke to his Bark Busters business, which previously encompassed southeast Tucson, Sahuarita, Green Valley and Vail. Raneri is an 18-year dog training veteran.

Long Realty Co. sales associate Sue Hill received the 2008 Samuel H. Woods Community Service Award, given to the sales associate who best exhibits a commitment to the community through service and values.

Also, Long sales associates Bill and Eloise Perry received the 2008 Barrington L. Long Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing those who significantly impact real estate, and whose exemplary character and leadership earned wide admiration from professional colleagues.

The A List gives props to the Tucson business community’s movers and shakers. Send information to alist@tucsoncitizen.com.

Citizen Staff Photographer

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

GREEN VALLEY – Local business owners say a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 19 north of Tubac is killing tourism, putting residents in harm’s way and costing millions of dollars in home sales.

But Border Patrol officials credit the checkpoint with helping them seize tons of illegal drugs, make hundreds of arrests and boost security in the area.

Opposition to the checkpoint has heated up since an expansion was announced last week.

“The checkpoint is a safety hazard to the communities north and south of us,” said Carol Cullen, executive director of the Tubac Chamber of Commerce.

Cullen is concerned that smugglers looking to get around the checkpoint are driven up the Santa Cruz River, Anza Trail or along railroad tracks and gas lines, pushing them closer to homes and people.

The “temporary” checkpoint has been in place since 2007, when a rule requiring the Border Patrol to change sites every two weeks and championed by former U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe expired.

In June, the Border Patrol will add $1.5 million in “interim” facilities that include a modular building, outdoor lighting and a canopy to protect agents and their search dogs from heat, rain and wind.

A planned $27 million permanent checkpoint could be years off, but its funding is included in the 2008-09 fiscal year budget for the Department of Homeland Security.

Mike Scioli, a spokesman for the Tucson Sector of the Border Patrol, understands the opposition but points out that many residents are thankful for the “second layer of defense” against smugglers and other criminals.

Recently, the sector reported a decrease in arrests at the checkpoint, “which means it’s working,” Scioli said.

Even with a decrease, the numbers are formidable: From October 2008 through March 2009, agents at the checkpoint seized 19,000 pounds of marijuana and made more than 300 arrests, Scioli said.

Out of 20 sectors in the United States, the Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector is the busiest, accounting for more than 50 percent of marijuana seizures and 44 percent of all arrests, he said.

“The numbers speak for themselves,” Scioli said.

After two years of having the temporary checkpoint in place, some business owners in the quaint, historical town of Tubac still eye it with disdain.

The Crowe’s Nest clothing boutique owner David Camet said he relies heavily on shoppers from communities north of the checkpoint. He said some customers, especially those from Green Valley, have called the checkpoint an inconvenience.

“People only come in now if they have to,” Camet said. “They don’t come to browse and enjoy a shopping day because they don’t want to have to wait 20 minutes in a line of cars to get home.”

Gary Hembree, owner of Old Presidio Traders, said the checkpoint has “done nothing to help business during these hard economic times.”

He said he has had Canadian customers ask if a passport is needed to get back through the checkpoint, and added that it creates an atmosphere of apprehension and confusion that drives away return customers.

But Don Stout of Tucson, who was shopping in Tubac last week with out-of-town company, said driving through the checkpoint doesn’t bother him.

“The checkpoint makes me feel secure,” Stout said. “I don’t think it should scare anybody, unless they have something to hide.”

Real estate agents said they have lost millions of dollars in sales because of the checkpoint.

“I’ve had people tell me, ‘I’m not going to drive through that thing every day,’ or that Tubac seems like a high-crime area,” said Zachary Freeland, director of new home sales for Brasher Realty in Tubac.

Citizen Staff Writer

DAVID L. TEIBEL

dteibel@tucsoncitizen.com

About 350 people honored the 41 law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty in Pima County since 1878.

They gathered Thursday morning for the second annual Pima County Regional Law Enforcement Memorial Service at the Tucson Convention Center.

Representatives of all branches of law enforcement attended.

“A law enforcement officer is assaulted every day” in the United States, said former U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona.

A law officer is killed in the line of duty “nearly every other day,” said Carmona, who served as master of ceremonies for the memorial service.

Keynote speaker Terry Goddard, Arizona’s attorney general, said “today we are here to honor Pima County law enforcement officers who lost their lives” in the line of duty. They are everyday heroes.

“It is for the rest of us, as we do today, to honor those who have fallen,” Goddard said.

Newly selected Tucson police Chief Roberto Villaseñor said “we need to remember the families of the fallen so they will never walk alone.”

Goddard said of the 41 officers “their devotion to duty inspires us all.”

Wednesday evening, a memorial service was held on the front lawn of police headquarters for slain Tucson officers.

Both services noted the death of Tucson police Officer Erik Hite in June.

Hite was shot and killed on the East Side last year as he pursued a shooting suspect.

Hite was the eighth Tucson officer killed in the line of duty since 1892.

“Eric had lived according to his faith and according to his convictions,” Villaseñor said.

David “Nick” Delich, 26, was arrested in Hite’s killing and is facing 10 criminal charges, including first-degree murder.

Hite’s name is to be inscribed on the wall of the National Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington, D.C. His family did not attend Thursday’s memorial.

Villaseñor said Hite’s widow, Nohemy Hite, was exhausted and emotionally drained after attending two other memorials this week for her husband. Erik Hite also is survived by his son, Roy David Hite, who is in the Air Force, and a baby daughter, Samantha Hite

Villaseñor said he and a contingent of officers will accompany Nohemy Hite to Washington next week for a ceremony in which Erik Hite’s inscribed name will be unveiled.

The cost of the trip will be covered by the Tucson Police Foundation, a nonprofit police support organization, Villaseñor said.

Citizen Staff Report

Ed Ackerley was awarded the ASUA Bumps Tribolet Award for his outstanding commitment, dedication and service to UA students. The award, presented by the Associated Students of the University of Arizona, is named in honor of Charles “Bumps” Tribolet, a legendary athletics and student services administrator at UA. Ackerley is a faculty member in the marketing department in the Eller College of Management as well as the School of Media Arts. He is also the faculty adviser for the American Advertising Federation UA Chapter. He and his family own Ackerley Advertising.

Michael Shriver was named manager of Presidential Pools & Spas, 12060 N. Thornydale Road. Shriver will oversee all day-to-day activities of the office and continue to manage the company’s satellite offices in Maricopa and Surprise. Shriver is joined in the Tucson office by longtime pool sales designers John Keller and Carlo Colombino. The Thornydale office is the company’s first in Tucson and fourth in Arizona.

The A List gives props to the Tucson business community’s movers and shakers. Send information to alist@tucsoncitizen.com.

Citizen Staff Report

Verizon Wireless LLC leased the 9,993-square-foot former Connelly Billiards space across from Park Place at 5855 E. Broadway. Brenna Lacey of Volk Co. represented Verizon. The landlord is Pier I Plaza LLC.

Addictive Racing Motorsports relocated and expanded into 6,307 square feet at 432 W. Prince Road. Paul Hooker of PICOR represented the landlords, Gerald and Donna Kauffman.

Arizona Stone & Architectural Products leased 5,024 square feet at 4975 N. Shamrock Place, Suite 101, from Eighta Builders/Shamrock 3 LLC. Pat Welchert of PICOR represented the landlord. John Ash of CB Richard Ellis represented the tenant.

The e-luminate Group renewed its lease with TA Building Corp. for 1,868 square feet at 177 N. Church Ave., Suite 305. Rick Kleiner of PICOR handled the transaction.

Pathology Biomedical Consulting Inc. extended its lease for 2,800 square feet at 2484 E. River Road from Jane Barton Revocable Trust. Rick Kleiner of PICOR handled the transaction.

The Prudential Real Estate Co. leased 2,100 square feet at 7231 E. Speedway Blvd. for its new office. Greg Furrier of PICOR represented the landlord, Sunrise Speedway LLC. Robert Curcio of Prudential Foothills Real Estate Co. represented the tenant.

Finishline Tools leased approximately 1,000 square feet of office space at 7481 E. Broadway, Suite 200, from James H. Bishopp. Michael Gross of Tucson Realty & Trust Co. represented the landlord. Kathyrn Wiseman of Key Group Inc. represented the tenant.

Georgia Tech Research Corp. leased approximately 5,440 square feet of office space at 6451 S. Country Club, Suite 111, from ABP LLC. Michael Gross of Tucson Realty & Trust Co. represented the landlord. Bob Davis of Grubb & Ellis represented the tenant.

Real estate transactions run each Tuesday here and online at tucsonbusinessedge.com. Send your listing to edge@tucsoncitizen.com.

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

Pima County health officials could learn as early as Saturday whether any of about 20 patient samples sent to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention test positive for swine flu.

Samples from around the country have flooded the CDC lab in Atlanta, delaying results, according to health department spokeswoman Patti Woodcock.

Arizona has sent 56 samples to the CDC for testing. So far, only four Phoenix-area children tested positive for the virus. Three Phoenix-area schools have been closed for seven days because of the results.

Public health officials say Arizona has enough courses of antiviral medicines to respond to swine flu cases, even though the state’s stockpile of flu-treatment doses are lower than the recommended level.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that each state have enough antiviral medicine on hand to treat 25 percent of its population. But a survey by The Associated Press of all 50 states and the District of Columbia found that 29 states, including Arizona, were below that mark.

Arizona’s estimated 258,000 treatment courses of antivirals would cover about 4 percent of the state’s population.

State health department spokeswoman Laura Oxley pointed out that the treatment courses are for people who are extremely ill and aren’t intended as a way to prevent an infection.

The state was supplementing its 58,000 treatment courses with an estimated 200,000 from the federal government’s strategic reserve. The 200,000 figure represents a quarter of Arizona’s full allocation from the reserve.

State and local health officials believe they will not need to request more from the national stockpile. They anticipate a drop in illnesses as regular flu season ends and summer approaches.

Public health officials in Arizona say it appears the swine flu that has spread across the nation in the past week isn’t any more severe than normal influenza.

April McMahon kept her 14-year-old daughter, Shealan Lester, home from Tucson’s Gridley Middle School on Friday because she had 102-degree fever.

A doctor diagnosed the eighth-grader with the flu, but said the family would have to wait until next week to learn if Shealan had swine flu.

Until the results get back, “the doctor said she needs to be quarantined to her room,” McMahon said in a telephone interview.

Aside from the fever, Shealan seems fine, her mother added. “I’m not worried at all.”

In letters and in e-mail and Web site updates, education officials throughout the region have told parents that a school might close for up to seven days if a student or employee contracts swine flu.

Despite concerns of a local outbreak, most here seem calm.

Catholic churches in the area will employ a little “common sense” during Mass, according to Fred Allison, a spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson. During flu season, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops typically advises its ministers of Holy Communion to wash their hands before Mass begins.

As of Friday afternoon, diocese officials had not urged churches to forgo communion, Allison said.

Citizen staff writer Ty Bowers contributed to this article.

On the Web

Arizona Department of Health Services:

http://www.azdhs.gov/

Citizen Staff Writer

RENÉE SCHAFER HORTON

rshorton@tucsoncitizen.com

University of Arizona students will have to open their wallets a little wider this fall – but not as far as they feared.

The Arizona Board of Regents on Thursday approved Robert N. Shelton’s request for a temporary tuition surcharge, but at a lower rate than the UA president initially proposed.

Shelton decreased the UA surcharge from $1,100 for all enrollees to $766 for resident students and $966 for nonresidents.

Regents approved it by a 7-1 vote, with Student Regent David Martinez III voting no.

The surcharge – combined with the $545 tuition and fee increase approved in December – means in-state UA students will pay $6,842 next school year, a $1,310 increase over this year’s tuition. This represents the largest year-to-year dollar increase in tuition and fees in UA’s history.

Students from out of state will pay $22,251 instead of the $21,285 price tag approved in December.

A modified proposal from Arizona State University passed 6-2, with Martinez and Regent Robert Bulla voting no. A modified proposal from Northern Arizona University passed 7-1 with Martinez voting no.

ASU lowered its proposal from $1,200 for all students to $600 for residents and $800 for nonresidents, with an $80 health and wellness fee for all students. A regent motion, however, cut that to $510 for residents and $710 for nonresidents.

NAU’s proposal for a tuition surcharge of $350 for all students was approved for residents, but raised to $450 for nonresidents. Students who started on NAU’s guaranteed tuition plan will see no increase. All students there will be charged an information and technology fee of $72.

The surcharges will expire in one year. Of the revenue generated by their surcharges for need-based financial aid, NAU and UA will set aside 20 percent; ASU, 22 percent.

Shelton said UA’s surcharge will generate $18.7 million after $4.7 million is set aside for financial aid.

University presidents said Gov. Jan Brewer’s pledge of stimulus funding enabled them to lower proposed surcharges. Brewer announced she would give the universities maximum shares of the more than $1 billion in federal funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

About $830 million of the $1 billion is earmarked for K-12 and higher education. Brewer has discretion in dividing those funds, after federal requirements are met regarding backfilling a certain percentage of previous budget cuts.

University leaders had originally estimated about $225 million would be allocated to the state university system. After the meeting, Shelton said Brewer’s allocation is closer to $280 million of which 40 percent can be spent in fiscal 2010, beginning July 1.

The remaining 60 percent will be spent in fiscal 2011 – most of it to mitigate tuition increases, with a small percentage for “modernization and reform” required by the federal stimulus law.

Though lowered, the surcharges still amount to a midyear tuition increase for students, who opposed the fee no matter how small. A few dozen students showed up to silently protest the tuition increase, holding signs that read, “Do you value my future?” “No books for a year” and “Don’t turn away future teachers.”

UA political science sophomore Emily May appreciated that the surcharge was nearly halved but said it was small comfort.

“Everyone is going to have to start budgeting for more tuition, more tuition, then just cross our fingers,” she said. “Hopefully, it won’t get too high that I have to stop coming to school.”

Regent Fred DuVal, however, warned that more tuition increases and possible surcharges are likely.

“We’ve heard the message from the e-mails,” DuVal said. “And today is a response to the pain that exists with Arizona families. We get it, we heard it, but we haven’t avoided (increases). We’ve simply deferred a bigger price tag at the back end of the three-year stimulus.”

Modeling presented by the regents estimates that if state funding for the universities remains stagnant, UA would need to raise tuition about $600 in the 2010-11 academic year and then $2,799 for 2011-12 to fund expected increases in enrollment. The large increase between those years represents the “funding cliff” predicted when federal stimulus monies run out.

Brewer was at the meeting for about 20 minutes and gave a statement committing the money to the universities, saying she wanted it used specifically to mitigate tuition increases. In addition, the governor said the universities need to present plans by fall for new business models.

“The fact of the matter is once these federal dollars are used up, our university system will likely face another huge financial shortfall,” Brewer said. “Thus, you need to begin preparations immediately for the day that these federal dollars disappear.

“By this fall, I want to see a new business model that is accountable, predictable and affordable to taxpayers, parents and students.”

Tuition increases

Students OK’d in Dec. With surcharge

Resident undergraduates: $6,076 $6,842

Nonresident undergraduates: $21,285 $22,251

Resident graduates: $6,866 $7,632

Nonresident graduates: $21,578 $22,544

Citizen Staff Writer

TEYA VITU

tvitu@tucsoncitizen.com

Declining air travel in the economic downturn has prompted Arizona Stagecoach to add wedding transportation to its lineup.

Brides and grooms have yet to ride the vans with the “Galloping Horse” logo. But wedding guests are finding vans a better way to conserve cash than rental cars, Chief Executive Fred Gould said.

“They are finding a more cost-effective way to get around,” Gould said.

The locally owned company, which has shuttled some 2 million people to and from Tucson International Airport since 1978, got into the wedding business in March, and Gould is eager to build the nonairport side of the business.

Gould said, “4 to 5 percent of our revenue in March was point-to-point,” adding that it includes weddings and charter service. “In terms of dollars, that could mean having a loss month or a profitable month. My target is 10 percent. When the economy comes back, my business is in position for serious growth.”

A year ago, Arizona Stagecoach focused almost entirely on shuttling about 85,000 people a year to TIA, and anybody wanting to charter vans had to approach the company. Now, Arizona Stagecoach is marketing its wedding, prom and special event transportation division, Gould said.

So far, the company has worked three or four weddings, transporting wedding parties from hotels to churches or churches to reception sites. Gould said wedding parties typically ask for two or three vans that carry 10 people each.

Arizona Stagecoach operates 19 vans. Five are company-owned and 14 are owned by their operators through licenses with Arizona Stagecoach.

Gould said four of the five company vans run on compressed natural gas, and any company growth will involve adding more alternative fuel vehicles, likely using compressed natural gas.

Arizona Stagecoach adds wedding services to offset slump in TIA shuttle runs

Citizen Staff Report

Al Wynant, managing partner at A6 Consultants, has been elected vice chair of the board of directors for Gabriel’s Angels, an Arizona nonprofit delivering healing pet therapy to abused, neglected and at-risk children. Wynant has served on the Tucson Advisory Committee since 2008, was elected to the state board in February and starts his term as vice chair in May.

Nancy Metzger Johnson joined El Rio Community Health Center in the newly created position of chief operating officer. Metzger most recently was executive director of St. Elizabeth’s Health Center. Also at El Rio, Dr. Barry London is the new operations medical director, also a newly created position. London is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics, is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a member of the American College of Physician Executives.

The A List gives props to the Tucson business community’s movers and shakers. Send information to alist@tucsoncitizen.com

Citizen Staff Writer

TY BOWERS

news@tucsoncitizen.com

With a little “seed money” from the federal government, Leslie Boyer hopes to shore up the country’s “critically” low supply of antivenin and quickly distribute that lifesaving drug to health care providers nationwide.

Boyer heads the University of Arizona’s Venom Immonochemistry, Pharmacology and Emergency Response (VIPER) Institute, which seeks $450,000 to begin creating a national distribution network for antivenin, a drug given to people suffering from bites from snakes, spiders and other insects and reptiles.

And U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., wants to help. Giffords is seeking federal funding for the institute’s plan and several other health-related projects in the region.

Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., also will go to bat for several area health care projects.

Between them, they seek about $9.6 million for projects that include addressing environmental and health problems on the U.S.-Mexico border and purchasing high-tech beds for the neonatal intensive care unit at University Medical Center’s Diamond Children’s Medical Center.

Medical professionals in southern Arizona “have more experience in dealing with antivenin for snake bites and scorpion bites than anywhere in the U.S.,” Boyer said Thursday. “We want to be able to share this with the country.”

Drug companies balk at the high costs of manufacturing antivenins, Boyer said, and supplies dwindle every year.

The institute could change that by leveraging its relationships with zoos, drug companies and researchers, Boyer said.

Her goal would seem to fit the criteria Giffords uses to evaluate requests made to her for federal funding, according to Giffords spokesman C.J. Karamargin.

“She needs to have the case made by the requesting entity that this is a good thing for taxpayers,” Karamargin said. “We vet it. Many projects do not make the cut.”

Giffords, who represents the 8th Congressional District, seeks funding for eight health care-related projects.

Grijalva, who represents the 7th Congressional District, wants to fund five projects, including $1 million for the UA-based U.S.-Mexico Binational Center for Environmental Science and Toxicology.

That group tries to promote the shared use of technology and information to combat environmental and health problems along the border, said A. Jay Gandolfi, associate director of research and graduate studies at the UA College of Pharmacy.

Mexicans living along the border often get poor information about environmental problems that could affect their health, such as arsenic in their drinking water, Gandolfi said. The UA-based center tries to make the latest health information available to them and their health care providers.

The Diamond Children’s Medical Center seeks $425,000 to help cover about a third of the cost to buy 30 specialty neonatal intensive care unit beds, according to Vicki Began, vice president for women, children and emergency services at UMC.

With the new beds, which will warm premature babies as well as isolate them from harmful germs, “we won’t have to move kids back and forth,” Began said. “It’s the best of both worlds.”

It could take until December for those seeking federal help to find out if their projects will get funds. On their Web sites, Giffords and Grijalva caution fund-seekers that most projects won’t make the cut.

Health care PROJECTS

U.S. Reps. Gabrielle Giffords and Raul Grijalva seek about $9.6 million in federal money for 13 southern Arizona health-related projects including:

• U.S.-Mexico Binational Center for Environmental Science and Toxicology: $1 million to help address and solve environmental and health problems on the border. (Grijalva)

• Arizona 7th District Eye Care Initiative: $250,000 for free glaucoma/vision screenings. (Grijalva)

• Desert Sentia Community Health Center, Ajo: $150,000 for renovations. (Grijalva)

• Carondelet Health Network: $455,000 for new digital mammography equipment (Grijalva)

• University of Arizona Center for Cellular Transplantation: $811,420 for outreach to rural and minority communities about diabetes treatments.

• U.S. Army, Fort Huachuca: $4 million for an advanced trauma life support system. (Giffords)

• United Community Health Center-Maria Auxiliadora, Green Valley: $325,000 for construction of a 21,000-square-foot clinic. (Giffords)

• Bisbee Hospital Association: $500,000 for emergency department renovations. (Giffords)

• Marana Health Center: $400,000 for radiological and other medical equipment. (Giffords)

• Sierra Vista Regional Health Center/Midwestern University: $350,000 for postgraduate nursing program. (Giffords)

• University Medical Center: $425,000 to help purchase 30 neonatal beds for the Diamond Children’s Medical Center. (Giffords)

• Northern Cochise Community Hospital, Willcox: $500,000 for a modular surgery facility. (Giffords)

• VIPER Institute: $450,000 to begin national antivenin distribution network. (Giffords)

Sources: Giffords, Grijalva Web sites

Citizen Staff Writer

HEIDI ROWLEY

hrowley@tucsoncitizen.com

It’s never too early to take care of your – or your children’s – teeth.

A new Web site on oral health and a grant-funded program for preschoolers are two tools the Pima County Health Department is using to improve dental care among the county’s youngest residents.

“The reality is, neglecting kids’ dental care is a form of neglect,” said Tucson dentist Brad Brumm, who is on the county health board. “Just because they close their lips and you can’t see it, it doesn’t mean it’s not there.”

Even a child’s first teeth need care.

“The biggest problem is we call them baby teeth,” said Margaret Perry, a registered dental hygienist who oversees the county’s oral health programs.

Both Perry and Brumm have heard adults say, “But the baby teeth are just going to fall out.”

“Cavities are communicable,” Brumm said. “They spread from one tooth to another. If you have cavities in your baby teeth, they are going to damage your adult teeth.”

Plus, baby teeth are place holders for adult teeth. If a child’s tooth gets so decayed that it has to be removed, it could ruin the placement of future teeth.

Brumm said starting at age 5, children have a mixture of adult and baby teeth.

Some baby teeth don’t fall out until age 11 or 12, Perry said.

The department’s Web site provides information on how to find a local dentist, the importance of fluoride, a question-and- answer section on bottled water and fluoride, and activities for children, including a downloadable brushing calender for kids.

The department’s Oral Health in Early Childhood Program aimed to teach youngsters oral health habits through their preschools.

Perry said a survey done during the first half of the three-year program found that 30 percent of preschoolers ages 0 to 5 had never seen a dentist, while 64 percent of those preschoolers either had current or treated dental decay.

Health department employees went into area preschools and helped teachers make teeth brushing a regular daily activity.

“At first the staff was resistant,” Perry said. “They would say, ‘Oh yeah, right, we are going to get 30 kids to brush their teeth.’ ”

However, once teeth brushing became part of the routine, the kids started to enjoy it, Perry said.

“For some of these kids, it may be the only brushing they get,” she said.

Children who were not introduced to teeth brushing at home often ended up asking their parents to buy toothbrushes so they could brush at home as well, Perry said.

The program reached more than 1,000 children in three years, Perry said. The initial grant funding will end this summer, but Perry said she hopes it will be renewed through a First Things First grant. First Things First, an initiative approved by voters in 2006, increased tobacco taxes to fund early childhood development and health care programs.

Brumm said parents are the most important factor in their children’s dental health.

“Telling your kid to brush their teeth isn’t enough,” he said. “You have to make sure the teeth are brushed and any teeth that touch together are flossed properly. Since most little kids can’t or won’t do it, especially the flossing, the parent has to. It isn’t negotiable. It has to be done, and it can be a struggle, especially at night when everyone’s tired.”

Parents, preschools targeted to improve kids’ dental health

Dental tips for parents

• Brush twice a day – once after breakfast and thoroughly right before bed. Floss any teeth that “touch together.”

• Start regular dental visits at age 2 or earlier.

• Give fluoride supplements daily. Tucson water isn’t fluoridated.

• Consider sealants – coatings dentists put on the chewing surfaces of permanent molars to prevent cavities.

Source: Dentist Brad Brumm

Citizen Staff Photographer