Dr. Kent Cherry

JOHN DAY – Advantage Dental Group’s newest dentist, Dr. Kent Cherry, couldn’t have chosen a better place than Grant County to launch his career – where he can pursue his lifelong dream of “living up in the mountains.”

An open house welcoming Dr. Cherry to the community will be 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 17, at the John Day office, 750 W. Main St.

Dr. Cherry, who started at Advantage Dental in June, replaces Dr. Travis Schuller, who was with Advantage’s John Day office since its opening in April 2012.

Growing up in Caldwell, Idaho, Dr. Cherry earned a bachelor’s degree from Boise State, and his dental training from Case Western Reserve School of Dental Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio.

All his life, he said he dreamed about living in the mountains.

“I took every chance I could to get out of the Boise valley and up into the mountains,” Dr. Cherry said.

“Now I get to live on the side of one – how could it be better than that?”

Dr. Cherry said he was drawn to a pursuit of dentistry following advice from a mentor. Once he started looking into it, he said he fell in love with the work.

“The variety of things that I get to do is great. I’m limited only by what I feel competent to do,” Dr. Cherry said.

Working with people, however, is the best part, he said.

“My favorite thing really, is the patient interactions,” Dr. Cherry said. “We try to have fun and make it as enjoyable an experience as we can for the patients and ourselves.”

He said he enjoys working for Advantage Dental, saying “they are a great company.”

Dr. Cherry, his wife Kailee, and children – son, Quinn, 4, and daughter, Alaina, 18 months – have made their home in John Day.

He’s looking forward to enjoying local recreational opportunities, and is already loving the fly fishing here.

And, with the arrival of hunting season, he said he’s also “looking for a good hunting buddy, if anyone is interested.”

Advantage Dental is located at 750 W. Main St. in John Day, at the west end of town. Hours are 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Thursday; and 8 a.m.-5p.m. on Fridays. The office is closed from 12-1 p.m.

For more information, visit www.AdvantageDentalClinics.com or call 1-888-468-0022, ext. 863.