Dentist from Nigeria works to provide services to under-served Charlotte community
A construction site on Beatties Ford Road is soon to turn into Bubbles Pediatric Dentistry, a practice hoping to provide dental care in an underserved community.
The 4,200-square-foot space is under construction near Lassalle Street. The dentistry's owner Dr. Somtochukwu Agunwah told Channel 9′s Erika Jackson that the building will have 16 patient chairs and 10 treatment rooms. Agunwah said her patients call her Dr. Somi.
'I'm a child at heart,' she said. 'So I love to interact with the kids a lot.'
But the road to becoming Dr. Somi and building Bubbles Pediatric Dentistry wasn't easy, Agunwah said.
'I came here from Nigeria after high school. I came here without my parents. I came here with my two siblings. While I was in school, I was working to support my livelihood. I braided hair, baked food, I waited on tables — I did all that just to take care of myself,' Agunwah said.
READ: Local woman works to honor, celebrate Afro-Latina roots
Now, her lifelong dream of providing dental care access to underserved communities is becoming a reality, she said.
'It's very walkable from so many businesses and so many homes. And I thought this would be a perfect location to provide access care to a lot of people,' Agunwah said.
Bubbles Pediatric Dentistry is planned to open doors in May, Agunwah said. But she hoped the impact the dentistry has lasts for generations, she told Jackson.
'If there's one thing I want the younger population to learn from me it is resilience,' Agunwah said. 'Keeping your eyes on the prize and keep pushing.'
WATCH: Local woman works to honor, celebrate Afro-Latina roots
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