Haverhill students win $1,500 in 'Healthy Smiles' essay contest

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June 18, 2009

For the 16th consecutive year, Dr. Joseph Cardarelli Jr. and his staff have recognized National Dental Health Month with an essay contest titled "How to Keep a Healthy Smile" for fourth-graders throughout Haverhill.

Cardarelli is a board-certified orthodontist with a practice at Mill and Summer streets.

This year's awards were presented to the following winners at Cardarelli's office on Tuesday, June 2:

Grand prize of a $500 bond to Connor Wertz of Bradford Elementary (winning essay at left);

Second prize of a $300 bond to Kailee McKinley of Bradford Elementary;

Third prize of a $200 bond to Emily Frascone of Silver Hill; and

Honorable mention and a $100 bond to Isabelle Wilson of St. Joseph's, Aidan Wertz of Bradford Elementary, Shaina Perates of Golden Hill and Natalie Warren of Tilton.

Long ago, there were some rolling green hills with a rambling river, and that river was home of many beavers. Like all beavers, they had yellow teeth, except Ben who was currently being harassed by all the beavers for his white teeth. "Look at Ben the clean one," they would say, or "I wonder if Ben will get us in trouble if we have dirty teeth. Oh no, here he comes, watch out!" and they would all run from poor Ben.

One day as Ben was heading to his dam after another day of tireless teasing, a beaver leapt from the bushes behind him. Ben immediately covered his ears and ran to his dam. Once inside, he put the kettle to boil saying, "Maybe I should give up and have dirty teeth just like the others." But then he heard a knock on the door. "No one ever knocks on my door, I'll go check who it is," Ben said. When he opened the door, he saw a beaver. Before Ben could slam the door the beaver said, "Wait! I want to know how you keep your teeth healthy!" So Ben paused, and said "Well, I always sing a song, it goes like this,"

Oh, to keep my teeth healthy,

I brush after every meal,

I eat lots of things like

Apples, Oranges and wheels (they're wood!)

And that's how ... I keep my teeth clean

"I think I'll do just that," said the beaver, and they both lived healthily afterward.