I received my undergraduate degree in Business Administration from California State University, Fullerton.  After graduating and finding success in “business type jobs”, I found it lacking in personal fulfillment and sought out to find a different path.  I looked into many different careers, but when I had the opportunity to observe dentists working at the Maricopa County Hospital and got to see dentistry from “the top down” instead of being the patient, I was hooked.  I’d be able to help people, use my hands at work and most importantly, do dentistry different than the bad experiences I have had in the past.  I currently have 5 root canals, 15 crowns and 4 implants in my own head.  To this day I am still “white knuckled” when I need dental work even though I know and trust my providers, it’s just that dental trauma never, ever leaves you.

So, landing on dentistry as a career, I quit my full-time business job and got a full-time job at Basha’s so I could have a flexible schedule to go back to school and take all of the science courses that are required for dental school.  After completing these, I matriculated into the Marquette University School of Dentistry. I was the President of my class and well before graduation, I knew General Dentistry was my niche.  My wife, Denise and I enjoyed Wisconsin so much, we would have stayed there if it weren’t for the draw of family and in friends out West. 

Dental school gave me four years to really think about and discover ways in which I could do things differently than my bad dental experiences as a patient.  There are many examples, but they most certainly begin with my team.  You may overhear me say it at the office because it seems I say it every day “I am surrounded by 7 brilliant, hardworking women that make my life easy”.  They are each at the very top of the profession in their skills, but even more important, they are unique amazing individuals that will actually care for and about you. Another thing is that I am very visual.  I like to take x-rays and pictures, show them to the patients so they truly understand what is going, then talk about options.  That being said, some people do not like to see the photos and that’s great everyone can have it their own way. Other examples are medications to help with anxiety, a “non-sales” environment and never getting a financial surprise.

As a past member of the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners, I was humbled and honored to have been singled out for my clinical skill and ethics by colleagues to the point that our Governor appointed me to this position. It was a strain of time away from family, but it was very rewarding to know the impact I had protecting the citizens of Arizona.