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Maple Family Dental

there aren’t many places where you can get free childcare, education and a good teeth cleaning. When you go to Maple Family Dental in Horace, North Dakota, these pros are just the start.

Dr. Jonathan Bultema and his wife Tara, who is an oral health educator, had been looking to put down roots and open their own family dentistry. Their dream came true when they opened February 2017, and within that first year, had educated over 8,900 children from daycares to classrooms. “We use puppets, puzzles, activities and crafts to get kids involved and interactive in learning more about their oral health,” Tara explains.

Maple Family Dental does a lot of other positive things in the area. They also educate on foster care (they’re in their third year of being a foster family), run food drives, Lego drives and give free dental services at the homeless shelter downtown. “We’re also working toward having other dental professionals and support staff become involved and work together.”

Their motto is “We care about YOU ... and your teeth.” Here are a few more reasons why this dentistry stands out.

Free childcare

They’re a family business, and with four children of their own, they understand how hard it can be to make time for yourself. That’s why they offer free childcare Tuesday mornings.

“We have to bring the kids into work with us sometimes, so it’s fun to see moms come in who haven’t been able to have dental work for years because there’s no one to watch their children, and we can help with that,” Tara says.

They want to get to know you

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Dr. Bultema was in the US Navy as a dental officer and when he moved back to the area, he worked in a nonprofit dental clinic where they got a lot of emergency patients, but not many repeat ones. He missed having that connection with his patients and wants to grow with them from their first visit as a baby, through school, sports, graduation and beyond.

Their patients are their family

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“Some examples of things we try to do are if you have a baby, we have a ‘Newest Smile at Maple Family Dental’ shirt, or if there’s a loss in the family, we bring lasagna in one of their Maple Family Dental tins.”

Tara says they want to be there for their patients in and out of the dental office.

They treat patients well and provide good service

Dental anxiety is very common, so Maple Family Dental does everything they can so you leave feeling less anxious and more comfortable about your next visit. They encourage you to ask questions and give you every option to let you make the decision.

Tara says, “We make sure you’re in control and have you leave knowing more about your teeth than when you came in.”

The community already loves them

They’ve been voted best dentist by the Forum’s “Best Of” and have been voted number one dentist two years in a row by Locals Luv Us.

Tara explains how honored they feel to have these accomplishments and this much support in such a short amount of time. “It’s not just Horace. People come all the way from Wahpeton or even Detroit Lakes. It’s a really great feeling.” aw

This husband and wife team has been using their business as a platform to benefit the community by being able to speak to a larger population and work toward making a difference. And they’re just getting started.