One year ago, a change came to the Perham community. Dr. Smith of Smith Family Dentistry sold his practice to Dr. Mark Runyan and retired at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. When Runyan signed the papers for the practice on May 1, 2020, the office was shut down because of COVID.
The practice was then renamed to "White Oak Dental" and reopened its doors on May 11, 2020. One year later on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, the dental office staff surprised Runyan with a party to celebrate the practice's one-year anniversary.
The staff decorated the employee lounge and had a taco lunch.
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While Dr. Runyan has lived in Frazee for four years, working and being in Perham for the past year have been new to him. He said the last few months have been filled with uncertainty, but the White Oak Dental team banded together and exceeded his expectations.
According to him, over the past year, he and the practice's team needed to learn how to be more efficient. Though, Runyan believes they've manage to be creative and think outside of the box.
"Just in general, I'm impressed with how patients have responded (to the pandemic) and how staff has responded," He said. "People (in Perham) are really friendly."
White Oak Dental is located on 135 3rd Street N.E. and can be reached at 218-346-7700 or on their website at whiteoakdentalmn.com .
