Contests and Events

Announcing the newest addition to our family.

Carissa gave birth to Sloane Marie on November 9, 2011 weighing in at 7 lbs 8oz. and 20" long. She joins her twin sisters Riley and Aubrey who turned two in December. Carissa is a very busy working mom but she is balancing all her responsibilities well and enjoying this wonderful time.

Iowa Cookie Crumbs

2011 Halloween Candy Buy-Back Sets New Record

Dr. Barbara Ries hosted her 11th Annual Candy Buy-Back and was amazed by the amount of candy brought into the office.This event is open to the entire community and runs for one week following Halloween. We collected 620 pounds of candy which is a new record!!!

Sticky and chewy snacks such as caramel, taffy, jellybeans, bubblegum, and popcorn should be avoided by anyone wearing braces or any orthodontic appliance. Even if you don’t wear braces, be careful with these types of treats to prevent damage to your teeth. By having the candy buy-back, Dr. Ries hopes everyone can enjoy their Halloween parties and trick-or-treating without feeling left out by the restrictions. She pays $1 for each pound of candy collected.

The annual candy collection is as much fun for our staff as it is for the families that bring candy donations. This year's haul has been shared by some very deserving charities. The recipients were the Open Door Mission, Treats the Troops Project , Omaha's Good News Bears, Turkey Trot, and Operation Christmas Child.

See you in 2012!!!

Halloween

Pumpkin Decorating

Every October we celebrate National Orthodontic Health Month with visits to our many referring offices to announce our Annual Candy Buy Back program and to drop off a decorated pumpkin. This year's pumpkins were painted with owls... wearing a few braces of course!!

2011 Summer Fun Photo Contest Winners!

Thank you to all the patients who entered photographs in our Summer Fun Photo Contest. Our team members and visitors enjoyed viewing them as they scrolled on all the office computers. Here are the five winners!

Labor Day Tournament Champions!

Dr. Ries is a proud sponsor of the Under 13 OFC Girl's Soccer Team. Congratulations ladies for taking 1st Place in the Labor Day tournament!

Spring 2011 Patient of Interest

     Pearl was visiting with her dentist at a routine dental appointment. He shared with her his concerns that since her lower teeth were very crowded she was unable to floss and keep them clean which could lead to gingivitis. This was alarming to Pearl because she already had a heart murmur from an earlier bought of rheumatic fever. She knew an infection in her gums could be passed to her heart. The dentist recommended she be evaluated by an orthodontist and referred her to Dr. Ries. Pearl was not sure that at 85 years old anything could be done to improve her situation but her son encouraged her to make the appointment and offerred to cover the costs for her treatment.
     After an initial exam, Dr. Ries placed brackets on Pearl's lower front teeth. Treatment took approximately nine months and went smoothly. Pearl tells us she had no discomfort and the entire process was very easy. One of the benefits to wearing braces and now the lower retainer is that she snacks less often which makes her physician very happy. She finds it much easier to keep her teeth clean and to floss with her teeth properly aligned.
     Our entire team looks forwards to Pearl's visits. She has an upbeat personality and a positive outlook on life which is why she was chosen as our 2011 Spring Patient of Interest and featured in our newsletter. Pearl understands that having good oral health is essential to her overall well-being and that you are never too old for braces.

Annual Candy Buy Back

2010 was a big year for candy at Ries Orthodontics. We bought back over 450 pounds of candy. We donated the candy to Treats for Troops and the Open Door Mission. Treats for Troops uses the candy as packing material for the cookies that they mail to troops serving overseas. The Open Door Mission has many uses for the candy including placing a piece with each sack lunch they pass out. Every one deserves a "sweet" every once in awhile.

Sticky and chewy snacks such as caramel taffy, jellybeans, bubblegum, and popcorn should be avoided by anyone wearing braces or any orthodontic appliance. Even if you don’t wear braces, be careful with these types of treats to prevent damage to your teeth. In an effort to promote a safe, healthy, and Halloween for children, Dr. Ries pays $1 per pound of candy exchanged.

Halloween 2010

Each year we ask our patients to share their ideas for our office theme. This year we went with Emma's choice and dressed as Hippies for Halloween!!!

Ries Orthodontics takes on the River City Round-Up Parade

September 25, 2010 was a little chilly and a slightly rainy day, but nothing could put a damper on our teams spirit as we proudly marched our way through downtown Omaha in the River City Round-Up Parade. Our float consisted of an old tractor pulling a trailer with patients riding upon hay bales. Our float's theme was "Live Life Smiling". We had a terrific time and saw many people we knew along the parade route including some patients.

Dr Ries and her son Luke before the parade

The team passed out "tooth-shaped" silly bands and postcards announcing our Annual Candy Buy Back.

Annual Pumpkin Decorating

We decorated 30 pumpkins this year and delivered them to local dental offices to celebrate both Halloween and Orthodontic Health Month which both fall in October. We enjoyed stopping by the offices and talking with the dentists and their teams. This is one of our favorite events and we look forward to it each year.

This years pumpkin represented our office philosophy that we should strive to "Live Life Smiling"!

Of course our pumpkin is wearing braces!!

SUMMER FUN PHOTO CONTEST 2010

Thank you to everyone who sent in photographs for our Annual Summer Fun Photo Contest. We scrolled the entries on our office computers and were amazed at how many times someone would shout out they reconized their friend in a picture. There were many wonderful entries but only five could be chosen to each win a $25 gift certificate. We will run the contest again in 2011 so plan to send in your pictures beginning late May 2011.