Peabody dentist has Revere vet smiling

PEABODY – Stephen Leon walked into Dr. Melissa Thompson’s dental office Tuesday as a patient, but he also walked in as an Army veteran sharing a common bond with another veteran.Thompson, who owns the Aspen Dental office on Sylvan Street, served for seven years in the Army National Guard. Leon served in Afghanistan in 2008 and 2009 and 2010 and 2011. An April 2, 2011 attack on his base left him with neck, back and knee injuries, but also with recognition from his commanders for the role Leon played in repelling attackers.”I was thrown 10 feet into a concrete wall. It was bad,” he said.Aspen Dental launched its Healthy Mouth Movement last year to provide free dental care to people in need. The chance to work on Leon’s teeth free of charge on Tuesday gave Thompson a welcome opportunity to help another veteran.”The access to care for veterans is not the same as for everyone else. To be able to give him care 15 minutes from home is great,” Thompson said.Leon, a Revere resident, relies on the Veterans Administration to meet his extensive health needs, including treatment for periodic memory loss that prompts him to rely on longtime friend and fellow Army veteran Moises Baez of Lynn for rides to appointments.”It’s the buddy system. He’ll call me up, and I will pick him up for an appointment,” Baez said.After he was wounded, Leon said he resisted efforts to send him home from Afghanistan, preferring to stay and serve with fellow soldiers.”I went back to my unit and finished my tour – dead or alive, you go and come as a group,” he said.A 2013 North Shore Community College graduate who served a tour in Iraq, Baez hopes to work in the VA helping veterans. He said Leon needs assistance in reviving his electrician and construction skills.”Stephen’s very intelligent, but when you come out, you need support,” Baez said.Thompson said Aspen in June sent a mobile dental clinic to Boston to provide care for anyone who needed it, and she said her Peabody employees were excited Tuesday to help Leon.”She has helped a lot of veterans,” Leon said.