By Gary Nager
We obviously have to do a lot of business profiles in our publications in order to keep our advertisers happy, but some stories are a lot easier and more fun to write than others — especially for someone like me, who has written, literally, thousands of these things over the years.
But, when you “have” to do a story about the dentist who took care of both of your children’s teeth for almost two decades, this gig gets a whole lot easier.
The dentist in question is Greg Stepanski, DDS, of Children’s Dentistry, who has had a New Tampa location for ten years now, in the Cory Lake Professional Center on Cross Creek Blvd. I can assure you that “Dr. Greg,” as almost everyone calls him, is a personable, fun, outstanding dental professional who genuinely cares about your kids — and not just because he and his wife Sue have raised three kids of their own right here in Tampa Palms.
When Dr. Greg opened his original office on E. Fowler Ave. in Temple Terrace in 1991, there were very few (if any) dentists with offices in New Tampa “proper.”
“We had quite a few New Tampa patients even when we first opened,” he says, “and it was obvious that the growth in our office was mainly coming from the New Tampa area.” He adds that it wasn’t long before he started looking for locations closer to his home, and finally built and opened his 3,800-sq.-ft. office on Cross Creek Blvd. in 2003 — the same year he shattered all of the bones in his leg in an accident involving one of those fold-out attic ladders I usually refused to climb even before I heard what had happened to him.
“It was so bad that I was in the hospital for a month and had to take three months off before I could go back to work — and even then, I was still on crutches and could only work part-time,” he says. “I haven’t been able to run or jog since then, but I definitely got more into riding my bicycle after that accident.”
In fact, the long-time runner had participated in the Disney Half-Marathon the weekend before suffering the injury to his leg. Since then, he has completed the MS-150 bike race twice and the 208-mile Cross-Florida bike race. He also plans to participate in the 300-mile “Cure on Wheels” bike ride from Tampa to Tallahassee next year.
Top Training & Technology
But, Dr. Greg is more than just my friend, he’s a truly outstanding pediatric dentist with training above and beyond the “average” dentist.
After graduating with his Bachelor’s degree from prestigious Notre Dame University in South Bend, IN, Stepanski earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the Ohio State University College of Dentistry in Columbus. The Ohio native then did a one-year general dentistry residency at the Medical University of Ohio in Toledo and two years of pediatric residency at the Case Western Reserve School of Dental Medicine in Cleveland.
“I was second in my class in crowns and bridges and taught dental residents, too,” he recalls. “But, I was probably the most comfortable taking care of pediatric patients.” Today, he is a Diplomate of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, and an active member of the American Dental Association, the Florida Dental Association and a past president of the Florida Academy of Pediatric Dentistry.
His Children’s Dentistry office offers the very latest in technology, including low-dose digital X-rays and flat-screen TVs above the patients in the exam/operating rooms, as well as fun video games and a humongous saltwater tropical fish tank in the waiting area.
A few of the nine members of Dr. Greg’s current staff have been with him “since the beginning” (including his office manager Melanie and Shannon, his receptionist and insurance coordinator) and most everyone else has been with him “for years, too.” The office definitely runs like a well-oiled machine and his young patients really seem to appreciate Dr. Greg’s easygoing demeanor and the office’s truly family-friendly atmosphere.
Among the services available at Children’s Dentistry are gentle cleanings, fluoride treatments, gentle injections, topical anesthetic gels, nitrous oxide, full sedation, natural-looking fillings, cosmetic bonding and TMJ diagnoses, as well as an in-office laboratory.
GDr. Greg says that performing lab work in the office allows Children’s Dentistry to have complete control over all laboratory procedures. “We’re able to be involved in the lab process, rather than depend upon commercial dental laboratories, like most offices,” he says. “Of course, this means more precise and beautiful materials, not to mention faster turnaround.”
Community Involvement
Dr. Greg also is one of the most active volunteers I know in this community — and I know quite a few people.
He is a past president of and still an active participant in the New Tampa Noon Rotary Club (which meets Wednesdays at noon at Hunter’s Green Country Club), a past president of the Tampa Bay Fly Fishing Club (which actually meets in Tampa Palms), and he and Sue, a teacher at the Corpus Christi Catholic School in Temple Terrace the last dozen years, are active fund raisers for both Corpus Christi and the family’s church, St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church on Cross Creek Blvd.
All three of his children — Maura, Mike and Brian — graduated from Tampa Catholic (TC) High and Dr. Greg helped coach the TC lacrosse team for three years, while Mike played for the team.
Maura, who is a Bronze Star recipient with the U.S. Army, was a track star at TC who also ran at John Carroll University. Mike is an accounting and pre-med major at the University of Miami (FL) and Brian walked onto the Mercer College (in Macon, GA) lacrosse team.
If you’re somehow still not sure whether or not Dr. Greg and Children’s Dentistry are right for your children, you should see both of my sons’ smiles.
For appointments & info about Children’s Dentistry (10317-B Cross Creek Blvd.), call 973-3100 or visit DrGreg-ChildrensDentistry.com. Most major dental insurance plans accepted.
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