|
||||
|
||||
By K. Reka Badger
While some dream of what could be, others take action, offering aid and comfort in a bid to better our world. Volunteers, those generous souls who give freely of their time and skills, help strengthen communities, ease the course of human events and demonstrate a genuine desire to make a difference. |
|
|||
| Heeding
the quiet call to service, local dentist and tireless volunteer Dr. Mark
Shultz makes it his business to step in wherever his skills can be of
use. Whether providing free dental care to low-income children in the
Santa Ynez Valley or lending a hand with hurricane cleanup, he derives
profound satisfaction from helping others."I feel like I get so much
out of that kind of thing," Dr. Shultz says, flashing a bright smile.
"It's tremendously rewarding." Since starting his Solvang practice in 1992, Dr. Shultz has made regular trips to area schools to provide oral screenings to students and has donated his expertise to health and safety fairs. Active with People Helping People's Healthy Start program, he has mobilized his colleagues to join him in providing volunteer dental services for youth in need. Last year found Dr. Shultz traveling to Romania to treat neglected children, many of whom had never been to a dentist."Our Rotary adopted an orphanage there," he says. "I met so many nice people and the kids were so appreciative. I had tears in my eyes when we left Bucharest, it was so fulfilling. I'm pretty regular at helping kids locally, but this was my first time out of the country." Closer to home, Dr. Shultz spent a few days this spring in the New Orleans area restoring the storm-ravaged home of Miss Augustine, an 82-year old widow. "Los Olivos Rotary raised enough money to buy her a refrigerator, stove-oven combo and a washer and dryer," he explains, "and we (incoming Rotary president Gabielle Robbins helped out, too) wanted to see that the goods were actually there." "My daughter Jessica came," he happily adds. "We spent two days washing and painting Miss Augustine's house and it certainly looks a lot better." In recognition of his many good works, a grateful community has bestowed upon Dr. Shultz a number of honors, including the 2003 Child Friendly Award, presented by the Third Supervisorial District to hail his contributions to the oral health of the Valley's disadvantaged children. In 2003, he also received the Volunteer of the Year Award for his work with People Helping People. 2004 saw him named Rotarian of the Year, and in 2005 he won a coveted listing in Who's Who in Dentistry. Born in Hollywood, California, in 1951, Dr. Shultz credits his deep-seated humanitarian impulses to early life experiences. "My father was active with the Shriners," he remembers, "and he showed me some of that interest. And I was in scouting, which instilled volunteerism." As a scout, and already in full possession of the service and leadership values that inform his adult life, Shultz earned entry into the Order of the Arrow, a national honor society of the Boy Scouts of America. "The Order of the Arrow has to do with bravery," Dr. Shultz grins at the memory. "You go to a campout, and some of the senior scouts dressed up like Native Americans and danced and chanted. Sitting around the campfire, they pull you out. They take you out where there are no lights," he continues, "no flashlights, just your sleeping bag. You wake up, don't eat, work all day and, if you manage it with no attitude, you get the Order of the Arrow." A second generation dentist, Dr. Shultz graduated from Emory University School of Dentistry in 1983 and practiced with his father for several years in Southern California, though neither of the two men originally intended to enter the field. "My dad was in architectural school, but then the Depression hit," Dr. Shultz says, "and people needed dentists more than architects. He was a wonderful artist. He drew illustrations for dentistry textbooks and put himself through school that way. "My first career," he adds, "was in landscape architecture. I studied at the University of Oregon. But I didn't like to draw." In 1984, Dr. Shultz volunteered his services to the Olympics, selected UCSB as his post and, though he only treated a handful of patients over the ten-day stint, he did get to know the staff at the UCSB Student Health Center. Married that same year, Dr. Shultz and his wife, Sherry, currently a teacher at Solvang School, eventually had two daughters, Jessica and Joanna. By 1990, the couple decided to relocate to a place more conducive to raising a healthy family. "I first looked in SLO," Dr. Shultz remembers. "I love sailing, so I knew I wanted to stay somewhat coastal. On the way, I stopped in at UCSB Student Health Center in Isla Vista to say hi. A week later I got a call from the administrator, to come interview for the Chief of Dental Services position at the Health Center. "I rented an apartment in Goleta and commuted to L.A. on weekends," he continues. "After two years, I found I enjoyed the university setting, but during quarter breaks I was too idle, so I decided to go back into private practice. I looked up and down the state and found an office on Alamo Pintado. |
||||
|
||||
|
"I had some tile work done," he adds, revealing an artistic
streak, "and put in old colored bottles and stuck Christmas lights
in the back, so they light up the bottles. I got that idea from the Watts
Towers. It's very colorful." Truly a Renaissance man, Dr. Shultz holds two patents, one for a manually operated oral irrigator that he dubbed "Squirt Gum," and another for an eye cup based on a similar pump system. And on occasion, he delights local audiences by taking the stage to belt out tunes from productions as diverse as "Cabaret," "Peter Pan" and "Oliver!" Bilingual since childhood, Dr. Shultz owes his fluency in Spanish to a beloved housekeeper named Carmen. "I cried at her wedding," he remembers. "Then she left us and went to work for Lana Turner. I was so bummed. Not a day goes by that I don't use Spanish." While daughter Joanna, a budding artist, prepares for her senior year in high school, 20-year old Jessica attends dental hygiene school at Northern Arizona University. "It's pretty incredible," Dr. Shultz says of his daughter's career choice. "I've never coerced my daughters to go one way or the other, I just wanted them to be self-sufficient. She realized that hygienists are in demand, they can take time off to get married, raise kids and go back to it. I'm very pleased." In addition to a tendency to embrace the dental arts, the Shultz family understands the value of volunteerism. While Dr. Shultz serves his many causes, Sherry puts her energy behind organizations such as the Relay for Life and the National Charity League. "My wife volunteers a lot," Dr. Shultz smiles, "so the girls are learning the right thing to do." Of his own commitment to serve others, he says simply, "I want to do what I can to leave the world a better place when my time comes." |
||||
| Copyright 2006, Inside Santa Ynez Valley Magazine, All Rights Reserved |
||||
