Dear Members,

Disclaimer: this letter is from me and there was no AI involved (even for grammar check). I’ll even put in an error for your enjoyment. That hurt me to do it, but that was for you! There is certainly a time and place for AI, but we all know when we read a social media post that was created by AI there’s a lack of warmth. It’s just dead sounding. I think this part of a larger epidemic that is our dehumanization and is really the theme of this message.

It’s my second go around in this position, writing this letter. The first time we were in the heart of the pandemic in 2020. The theme of that message was resilience and maintaining a human connection. It’s six years later and I still feel in my heart that it is our top priority. What also hasn’t changed is that Carrie Peil is the backbone of the OADL; the human behind the movement looking to create a positive change in our industry.

There are signs of us moving in the right direction. Carrie is now also managing the Washington State Laboratory Association which is has resulted in resurrecting our yearly meeting into a new joint show with Washington. This brings a whole new audience to this meeting and also enables us to draw more vendors; what a change from six months ago from what seemed like our last large meeting!

Although the remaining dental labs across the country are more profitable according to the latest data, there remains challenges to our businesses. The natural response to stress is to shell up and disconnect. I would encourage you to do the opposite. Open up, be willing to make connections to colleagues and vendors, and let’s all come together in 2026!

With Gratitude,

Charles Banh

President, Oregon Association of Dental Laboratories