Michelle Vacha, RDH, BS, Founder and Executive Director
A native of Arizona, Michelle received her Bachelor of Science degree from Northern Arizona University in 1989. She brings over 30 years of experience of dental care to CDH. Prior to her career in dental hygiene, she was a dental assistant for 6 years. Her years in dentistry brought to her attention the difficulties the elderly face in receiving professional dental/dental hygiene care, and the resulting disease and neglect. This prompted her in founding Senior Mobile Dental in 2006, and her journey into independent practice and the nonprofit sector.
Michelle holds memberships in the American Dental Hygiene Association, CDHA, Colorado Nonprofit Association, Latino Chamber of Commerce in Pueblo and the Pueblo Chamber of Commerce. She presents to various organizations about the issues elderly face in the lack of oral health care and subsequent ramifications, and the national expansion of the Community Dental Health (formerly Senior Mobile Dental).
Mike Vacha, Co-Founder
Mike Vacha is from Kearney, NE and grew up on Colorado Springs. He founded Senior Mobile Dental with his wife Michelle in order to address the difficulties and disparities older adults faced in receiving dental care.
Russell Rohlfing, Dental Lab Technician
Russell brings over 32 years of experience in the fabrication of both fixed and removable dental appliances. He has been making dental prosthetics of all types since being trained and certified as a dental lab technician by the United States Air Force in 1986. In 1990 he received his Associate of Applied Science degree in Dental Lab Technology from the Community College of the Air Force. In 2006 Russell received his Bachelor of Science degree in Health Care Administration.
Jessica Pfeifer, Dental Assistant
Jessica is originally from Peru. She moved to the United States in 2000 for a job opportunity transfer to Washington DC. She was working in business administration for a travel agency. During that time, she met her husband, and then moved to North Carolina. Because of the declining travel agency business, she pursued a different career. Jessica received her Dental Assistant Certification at a Dental College in 2009. She worked at a private practice office for 3 years before she took time off to start her family. Jessica is the proud wife of US Army MSGT Pfeifer. In 2016, her husband was transferred to Colorado Springs.
Jessica joined the Community Dental Health team in 2018. She enjoys spending time with her husband, 2 children and their dog.
Dannielle LaRocca, Receptionist
Dannielle joined Community Dental Health in December 2017. She was born in England and lived there until she was 9 years old. Along with her great customer service, she brings the following experience: Hope Montessori Classroom Assistant for 3 years, Pera on a D-49 Special Needs School Bus for 1 year, Nanny for 1 year, D-11 Preschool Teaching Assistant for 2 years and 2 years in the food service industry.
She’s married and has a beautiful daughter and 2 cats. They love spending time together bowling, miniature golfing, going to the Penny Arcade and playing video games together.
Dannielle also manages most of Community Dental Health’s social media.
Rosie, Dental Assistant & Denture Technician
Rosie has been a Dental Assistant/Denture Technician for 18 years dental assisting and working in a denture laboratory.
Darrel E. Kneupper, DDS - Board of Directors, President
1969 grad, U. of Texas Dental Branch in Houston, USAF service '69-'71 at Ent AFB, Colorado Springs; private family practice '71-78 in Colorado Springs; grad school in Prosthodontics at U. Washington in Seattle '79-'81; private solo practice limited to prosthodontics in Austin, TX '81-'99 when I retired to live in Hawaii for 3 years. Relocated to Colorado Springs n 2003 and started my outreach nursing home resident care limited to denture services only in 2006 which I continue at the present time on a limited basis. I also serve area dentists as a denture mentor coach when called on, and am pleased to offer my volunteer services to a local Children's clinic as well an adult focused free clinic, where I provide denture services for those in need who have no other care options. I am pleased to have served on the CDH board of directors for about 10 years as we share the same focus of care and I'm pleased to collaborate with the CDH staff when my patients are in need, as I do not provide general dental service any more. I'm now 75 years old and am pleased to offer my sage advice and guidance.
Brandon D. LaValley, MPAS - Board Member
Lieutenant Colonel Brandon LaValley graduated from the United States Air Force Academy with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management in 2003. He served 12 years as an active duty Air Force officer and F-16 pilot and continues to serve as an instructor pilot in the Air Force Reserves. Brandon lives in Colorado Springs with his wife, Corinne, and two young children.
Brandon received a Master of Science degree in Financial Planning in 2014 and holds the Master Planner Advanced Studies (MPAS®) professional certification. He co-founded Targeted Wealth Solutions, a Registered Investment Advisor firm that specializes in working with medical professionals, veterans, and business owners.
Brandon has served on the Community Dental Health Board since 2018.
“The opportunity to serve Community Dental Health is amazing. I believe strongly in the importance of dental care and am a champion for the work this team provides to our community.”
Halie Anthony, MBA - Board Member
Halie Anthony obtained both a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration/Management and an MBA from Colorado Technical University in Colorado Springs. Halie worked in the DoD industry for 12 years in the areas of Information Technology, Systems Engineering, Space, and Missile Defense. As a manager for Lockheed Martin, she worked in various locations around Colorado Springs such as NORAD, Schriever AFB, and the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and held different leadership positions such as IT Manager, Team Chief, and Systems Engineer.
Halie moved into the Healthcare Industry in 2012 to start her role as the Operations Manager of Clinical Engineering for UCHealth and was later promoted to a System IT Manager for Ancillary Applications. Halie accepted a VP of IT role at Peak Vista Community Health Centers in 2016 where she found her passion for community and a desire to support and provide a positive impact to patients facing access barriers.
Halie is involved with many associations including AAMI (Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation) and HIMSS (The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society). She also teaches annually at the Colorado Association of Biomedical Equipment Technicians (CABMET) Symposium and previously served as their Vice President.
As a board member of Community Dental Health, Halie hopes to contribute to the mission of providing a dental home to our low income community by using her experience in technology and business to remove access barriers. She is excited to be a part of a team who is patient centered and provider focused in order to enhance the dental health of the community-at-large.
Steven Walsh, MBA, PMP, CPHQ - Board Member
Steven Walsh is a well-rounded professional with over 22 years of experience in Healthcare Administration. His diversified background enables him to better understand the needs of organizations and lead cross-functional teams to continuously improve processes and operations.
As quality improvement grows more important in the healthcare field, Mr. Walsh is leading initiatives as a Practice Transformation consultant for primary care providers with the ultimate goal of making a meaningful difference in patient’s lives.
Prior to his current position, Mr. Walsh served as a Healthcare Administrator in the United States Air Force. Mr. Walsh holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and has certifications in the areas of PMP and CPHQ.