Golden Valley dental clinic rises from ashes of fire in Modesto

Hanshaw Dental Center is back to fixing teeth in south Modesto, 21 months after a fire destroyed its building.

Golden Valley Health Centers hosted a grand reopening Monday at the clinic, which serves low-income patients from Hanshaw Middle School and elsewhere. The $1.2 million project doubled the space to about 3,000 square feet and raised the number of exam chairs from three to seven.

“It was devastating,” said Tony Weber, chief executive officer at Golden Valley, of the fire on Sept. 5, 2014. “The community depends on us, depends on the services we provide, and we committed that day to rebuild it and hopefully make it bigger and better than it was.”

Golden Valley serves about 111,000 patients at 26 medical centers and eight dental clinics in Stanislaus and Merced counties. The nonprofit employs about 800 people and has a policy of not turning away people who cannot pay.

The Hanshaw dental site, started in 1994, was lost to a fire started by a vandal messing with electrical wiring, Weber said. The medical center next door was not damaged. During the rebuilding, patients saw dentists at Golden Valley sites in west Modesto and Patterson.

The new building has two dentists – Melanie De Leon, who worked there before the fire, and Michael Wu. This will allow Golden Valley to work through its long waiting list, said Lisa Swenson, chief dental officer for the network.

“We are really excited to have this brand new equipment, brand new site – all electronic and digital,” she said. This includes a panorex machine, which takes full-mouth X-rays.

State and federal lawmakers sent resolutions noting the rebuilding. Golden Valley also got praise from Steve Rank, incoming president of the Modesto Chamber of Commerce. He said he has seen the need for health care in south Modesto through his work in private security and law enforcement.

“My hat’s off to Golden Valley for moving forward with the phenomenal service you provide,” he said.

This story was originally published June 20, 2016 at 6:55 PM with the headline "Golden Valley dental clinic rises from ashes of fire in Modesto."