February 1 was a milestone anniversary for Dr. Jessica Quint in her dental practice above Commercial Trust Company on the square in Fayette.

Quint took over the practice from Dr. John Byland 15 years ago, early in 2007, and is the fourth dentist to practice in the same location. The first dental office there was opened by Dr. E. M. Blakey in 1910, followed by Dr. Walter Ackerson, and then Byland. 

This legacy is clearly honored. Photographs of all four dentists hang on the wall in Quint’s reception area, in chronological order from left to right.

And Quint hopes to one day pass on this legacy to a new generation. “I have talked to several local students over the years to encourage them to follow in my footsteps and return,” she said. 

She does more than talk. She sometimes employs Central Methodist University students so they can gain hands-on experience and learn about what it takes to run a dental practice. 

Quint found her inspiration as a young person early. She has dim memories of visiting her grandfather’s dental practice in Fairfield, Iowa before he retired. 

Encouragement and advice from  professors and mentors during her undergraduate days as a biology and pre-med student at Central inspired her to pursue dentistry as a career path.

“I had a professor, Dr. Momberg,” she recalled, “who asked if I’d ever thought about a career in dentistry,” which prompted her to look into the options. 

“I decided it was a great career that was science-based and medical-based but also great for somebody who wanted to raise a family and have some more freedom,” she said. 

Before establishing her office in Fayette, Dr. Quint worked at a group practice in Columbia, then known as Pro Dental. 

She moved back to Fayette because it’s a nice place to raise a family, and community connections provided extra support that is so vital for a new business owner. 

She’s involved with the community as a member and past president of Rotary, through her church activities at Linn Memorial United Methodist Church, as a member and past president of P.E.O. Chapter AU, and on behalf of her children as a former school board member, scout leader and coach. And of course, being an alumna of FHS and CMU meant that she’d developed relationships over time.

“I’m blessed to be in a community like Fayette,” she said. “I already had established relationships with Sandy Ivy and Janet Jacobs, so I was able to get some business support from Commercial Trust.”

“Pam Hufstetter was another person I was able to rely on. She’d managed offices” and was able to contribute knowledge and skill to help get Quint’s practice off the ground. 

And there have been many more helpers. “Local people want you to succeed,” she said.

 Among the biggest challenges she’s faced has been learning what it takes to run a business. 

“I was not prepared for that,” she said. “I didn’t have any business experience. I know now in dental school that’s one of the focuses they have. You have a trial practice and computer modules to teach you to run a practice.” 

With a lot of support from the community and a lot of grit, Quint overcame these challenges and mastered the skills she needed. 

And she’s gone far beyond the basics. She’s modernized the décor during her tenure, and brought the practice into the digital realm, moving to digital x-rays, crown scanning and fabricating, and digital scans for orthodontics.

Quint says the biggest lesson she’s learned during her career is to give herself permission to slow down - to not push herself too hard and to take care of her wellbeing as well as her dental practice. 

“When I worked in group practice, everything was very busy, very pushed, very production-driven,” she remembered. She’s made an effort to run her own business in a more community-oriented manner and devote time to what she does. 

“And I’m not successful at slowing down,” she admitted with a laugh, indicating the computer on her nearby desk. She was working on completing a certification course for her church nursery duties, during her lunch break.

“But I try to remember the world won’t end today” if she doesn’t accomplish a particular thing, she added. “And people understand that sometimes you need a minute.”

Where are she and the practice headed in the next 15 years? “To retirement, and traveling,” she said. But she doesn’t want to leave the business without adding photograph to her wall and name to the office’s century-plus legacy. 

“My goal is to bring somebody in to continue the practice. I have a couple of local kids who’ve expressed an interest,” Quint said, “(One of whom is) working for me now while she’s doing some pre-dental work.

“I try to seek out people that would be interested in coming back to Fayette, and making those connections,” she said. “I don’t plan on just closing those doors. But who knows? Time will tell.”