About Interfaith Dental
Interfaith Dental is a volunteer-driven nonprofit agency that helps vulnerable populations achieve and sustain a healthy smile.
If you would like to learn how your support can contribute to this mission, click on schedule a tour and we would love to share the impact a healthy smile and life can make!
Mission
The mission of Interfaith Dental Clinic is to create a healthier community by providing transformational oral health care for those experiencing poverty.
Vision
Interfaith Dental Clinic’s vision is that every individual has the opportunity to achieve and sustain a healthy smile.
History
After doing volunteer dentistry in third-world countries, our founder Dr. Tom Underwood realized that there were hardworking people right here in Middle Tennessee that were in just as desperate need of dental care but could not afford it. With the help of the Nashville Dental Society and the Outreach Commission of West End United Methodist Church, Dr. Underwood initiated Interfaith Dental Clinic in November 1994 to provide affordable dental care for working poor families and the elderly who fall between the cracks of private practice and public healthcare.
The clinic started with a two-chair operation and one employee in the basement of West End United Methodist Church. In 1998, Interfaith Dental Clinic moved to 1721 Patterson Street and in 2012 opened a satellite clinic in Murfreesboro to serve the Rutherford County community. In 2019, the clinic expanded and moved into its current location at 600 Hill Avenue. The clinics have 26 operatories and state-of-the-art equipment.
Who We Are
Dr. Tom Underwood
Dr. Thomas S. Underwood has spent more than three decades providing humanitarian service to people in need of dental care.
Dr. Underwood first volunteered overseas. He spent a month—including Christmas Eve 1975—volunteering in a dental clinic in an Israeli kibbutz. Only five years out of dental school at that time, young Dr. Underwood felt compelled to serve and his humanitarian calling took him around the globe for nearly 20 years to volunteer in places from Jamaica and Honduras to Kenya and Zambia.
“Then I realized how many people in my own state had worse oral health than the people I was treating outside the United States,” said Dr. Underwood. “So I thought we ought to do something right here, in a setting where we could follow up with patients and offer comprehensive dental care.”
With support from the Nashville Dental Society and the outreach commission of the West End United Methodist Church, Dr. Underwood founded the Nashville Interfaith Dental Clinic in 1994. The clinic’s original home was in the church’s basement.
“In the past 13 years, thanks to Dr. Underwood’s passion and commitment, Interfaith Dental Clinic has grown from a small, part-time clinic located in a church basement to a dental program that owns its own 7,500 sq. ft. facility, has 35 employees, uses more than 250 volunteers, and provides comprehensive, affordable dental care to more than 1,200 patients each year,” said Interfaith Dental Clinic CEO Dr. Rhonda Switzer-Nadasdi.
Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors serves a vital purpose here at Interfaith Dental. Each of our members offers their services to us in the spirit of helping us build smiles, one patient at a time.
Rutherford County Advisory Council
Our Advisory Council serves as ambassadors in the Rutherford County region. They are invaluable to bridging connections so the mission is fulfilled.
Brant Beard
Parrallon
Mike Brooks
All State Insurance
Elise Cambournac
Parallon
Rene Casali
DaVita
Heather Collins
Arc Worldwide
Justin Coury
Tristar Hendersonville
Nancy Collins
Retired RDH, Community Volunteer
Dr. Katrina Eagilen
DentaQuest
Dr. Ruth Ross Edmonds
Orthodontist
Vicki Estrin
Ankura
Dr. Heather Fagin
General Dentist
Jenny Freeland
Community Volunteer
Bracey Halbrook
HCA Healthcare
Dr. Andrew Harris
General Dentist
Ben Jickling
Vanderbilt Owen Board Fellow
Menda Kincaid
Delta Dental of Tennessee
Ryan McCormick
Rutherford County Advisory Chair
Bill Newton
Retired Executive
Jeff Newton
Delta Dental of Tennessee
Jennifer Perkins
Amerigroup
Margaret Smith
Medical Accounts Management
Rachel Stearns
Board Chair
CAT Financial
Brian Swenson
HCA Healthcare
Justin Stappler
Young Leaders Council Intern
Mallory Yoder
Young Leaders Council Intern
Dr. Tom Underwood
Lifetime Member
General Dentist
Dr. Rhonda Switzer-Nadasdi
Interfaith CEO
Dr. Jeffrey Bell
Endodontist
Dr. JoKeidre Butler
General Dentist
Dr. Jim Calder
Retired, MTSU
Dr. Walter Chitwood
General Dentist
Dr. Jay Davis
General Dentist
Dr. Brian Gray
Murfreesboro Medical Center
Dr. Ben Jamison
General Dentist
Dr. Rachel Johnson
General Dentist
Ryan McCormick
Guaranty Trust
Joanne O'Connell
General Mills
Dr. Roy Thompson, D.D.S.
General Dentist
Dr. Kaci Turner
General Dentist
Veda White
CAT Financial
Michelle Russell
Interfaith Dental
Dr. Rhonda Switzer-Nadasdi
Interfaith Dental
YOU can make a difference.
Interfaith Dental is a volunteer driven nonprofit agency that helps vulnerable populations achieve and sustain a healthy smile.