For Dr. Jayme A. Oliveira Filho and his family, giving back is second nature. Dr. Oliveira, affectionately known as Dr. O, opened the Alencar Family Dentistry in Chesapeake in 2017. After receiving a multitude of love and support from the community and his patients, Dr. O decided to reciprocate that same support back into the community.
“We’ve been very blessed,” shares Dr. O. “I’ve tried to be involved in the community and give back to the community, as it was giving to us.”
He started by sponsoring community initiatives and local sports teams, such as the Chesapeake Fraternal Order of Police and Great Bridge High School basketball team. While this was incredibly rewarding for Dr. O, he knew he could do more.
“We decided to make our efforts and charity work more organized,” he explains.
In 2020, Dr. O, alongside his wife Dr. Cristina Alencar, started the Alencar Family Foundation to do just that.
“One of the most important things I want to create with the foundation is an extended arm into the community,” he explains.
Dr. O shares that the motto of the Alencar Family Foundation is “be the good.” He continues, “Be the reason people believe there is still good in this world. You don’t need to do a lot to help someone.”
The Alencar Family Foundation continues to support local initiatives and organizations, while embracing two more organizations—Chesapeake Care Clinic and Chesapeake Healthcare Foundation Bra-ha-ha®.
Dr. O’s work with the Chesapeake Care Clinic began a few years ago. The nonprofit organization offers medical and dental care to low income and underinsured area residents. There, Dr. O volunteered, providing service and mentoring dental students from Virginia Commonwealth University.
The Bra-ha-ha® is an annual campaign in the fight against breast cancer, a cause that’s incredibly important to Dr. Cristina Alencar, an oncologist with Virginia Oncology Associates. Chesapeake Regional Health Foundation sponsors the annual event, donating proceeds to breast health services to uninsured and underinsured members of the community.
To learn more about the work done by the Chesapeake Care Clinic and The Bra-ha-ha, and to support the organizations, visit ChesapeakeCare.org and Brahaha.org.
Dr. O explains that one of the reasons both he and his wife went into the healthcare field was to serve and help others in their times of need. These are the same values the couple instills in their son, Jayme.
“I want to get him involved in charity work and the sentiment of serving others,” Dr. O says. “We live in a crazy, crazy world, but we’re trying to show him through our examples and our actions that we are in this world to make this a better place for everyone, not just for ourselves.”
For more information on the Alencar Family Foundation, visit Facebook.com/AlencarFamilyFoundation.
Chris Murphy
