Board Members
Linda Haigh was born and raised in Southern California and moved to Northern Nevada in 1985 where she worked with her husband in their engineering consulting firm for many years in Lake Tahoe. However, her passion was always helping seniors and with a move to Reno in 1997, she began working as a Senior Outreach Coordinator at the University of Nevada, Reno, Sanford Center for Aging, Senior Outreach Services (SOS) program. It was during this time that she discovered 60 low-income veterans living in subsidized housing in dire need of dental care. Linda soon discovered that the vast majority of our veterans did not qualify for dental care at the VA because the qualifications were so restrictive. This seriously unmet need for dental care became the driving force for the Adopt a Vet Dental Program (AAVD) which Linda and her husband founded in April 2010, after Linda retired from the University. In 2014, AAVD received the national Newman’s Own and Fisher House Award for their innovative approach to providing dental care to low-income veterans. Both Linda and AAVD received the Nevada Veteran Supporter of the Month in 2017 from former Governor Sandoval. Linda has devoted the past nine years to providing dental care to low-income veterans with the help of the goodwill and skill of many dental professionals, a compassionate program staff and volunteers, and the financial support from generous donors, local foundations and the State of Nevada.
Charles R. Cordova, Jr., D.D.S, J.D. (Chuck) is a graduate of So. Tahoe High School and was a member of their 1987 Nevada AAA State Championship basketball team. He attended Chico State University and graduated from the University of California at San Francisco, School of Dentistry in 1997. He served as a dentist in the US Navy, stationed in Sicily. On returning home, he established a dental practice in So. Lake Tahoe for a few years before moving to Las Vegas. There, he took a hiatus from dentistry and attended the University of Nevada, William S. Boyd School of Law. There, he was a published member of the Nevada Law Journal, graduated Magna Cum Laude and passed the Nevada Bar in 2007. For a short time, he practiced both dentistry and law simultaneously, but ultimately returned full time to dentistry. In 2016, he moved back to the north, and in 2018 opened Affordable Dentures and Implants. Shortly after opening, he began regularly treating patients referred from both Adopt-A-Vet and the Compassion Community Clinic. Dr. Cordova is a member of the Northern Nevada Dental Society, the Nevada Dental Association the American Dental Association and the State Bar of Nevada. When not reconstructing smiles, Dr. Cordova enjoys spending time with his family, engaging in outdoor activities, and traveling.
Crista Myatt was born and raised in Reno, Nevada. She developed a passion for dentistry early on while working as a surgical assistant with her father, Dr. Thomas Myatt, DDS (previous AAVD board member and current volunteer physician), beginning at age 15. This early exposure to the field continued throughout her education, culminating in her graduation from the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) in 2008. Shortly after graduation, Crista embarked on a career in the Defense and Aerospace industry as an Associate Business Analyst at Sierra Nevada Corporation, where she progressed to the role of Sr. Director, Finance Transformation for the CFO. This unique combination of interests and experiences led her to become a board member at Adopt a Vet Dental, allowing her to give back to her community in a meaningful way. When not working, Crista enjoys spending time with her family playing games, camping, cooking, and traveling.
Suzanne Edwards is a native of Florida. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College, in S. Hadley, MA, with a BA in English. After college she began her career in Palm Beach, FL in the Financial Services industry as a Stockbroker with Smith Barney, Harris Upham & Co. Seven years later she moved to the Fiduciary side of the business as a Trust Officer with Northern Trust. In 1996, her career took her to the Pacific Northwest where she worked for BofA/SeaFirst. Another career opportunity took her to San Francisco in 1998. While living in the Bay Area she earned her MBA at St. Mary’s College in Moraga. Suzanne spent the last 16 years of her 31-year career at Wells Fargo Private Bank. Her most rewarding position at Wells Fargo was as a Philanthropic Consultant for both private and public charities with a focus on wealth succession planning. Her clients were located in Northern California, Nevada, and the Pacific Northwest. She became a Nevadan in 2009. Suzanne has been a life long volunteer and currently serves as Second Vice President on the board of the Mzuri Wildlife Foundation. She served 18 years on the board of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, six of which were at the national level. She is a life member of the NRA and the NRA Women’s Leadership Forum; a member of the CA Rifle & Pistol Association, The Daughters of the American Revolution, The Mayflower Society, a Sustainer in the Reno Jr. League, and is now excited to be on the Board of Directors for the Adopt a Vet Dental Program.
Dr. Matthew Thacker is the Program Director for the Advanced Education in General Dentistry residency in Henderson, Nevada. After earning his bachelor’s degree in Biology with a concentration in Integrative Physiology from UNLV, he attended UNLV’s School of Dental Medicine and received his Doctorate in Dental Medicine (DMD) degree in 2018. After graduating from dental school, Dr. Thacker served in the U.S. Navy as a Fleet Marine Force dental officer for four years aboard the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in 29 Palms, California. He continues to serve the community as a volunteer dentist for the Special Olympics, Give Kids a Smile, UNLV’s Sgt Ferrin Memorial Veteran’s Clinic, Adopt-a-Vet, Project Homeless, and Roseman University’s EMPOWERED program. He is passionate about providing a broad scope of evidence-based dental care to the Las Vegas Valley community and is dedicated to training the next generation of dentists to be skilled, compassionate, and service-based healthcare providers.
Dr.Thacker is a member of the American Dental Education Association, Nevada Dental Association, Southern Nevada Dental Society, and is a Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry.
Dr.Thacker and his wife, Dr. Angelica Jane Bustos-Thacker are natives of Las Vegas and currently live in Summerlin with their two dogs, Puka and Boba. In his free time, Dr.Thacker enjoys playing ice hockey, graphic design, computer coding, traveling, and is an avid woodworker.
