Meet Sam Graffeo Gardner | Pediatric Dentist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sam Graffeo Gardner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sam, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
When I was finishing up residency, my family and I desperately wanted to move back to Boulder where we had lived for several years before leaving for residency. I found a great practice to join and had planned to buy in and become the owner. When the time came, the practice was bid on by another practice & since I didn’t have the financial backing of a practice I couldn’t out-bid the offer. But I live in Boulder, my kids go to school here, we had planned all along on staying and I wanted to practice dentistry where I live. The reason I wanted to become a pediatric dentist in the first place was to be an involved member of my community; the help the children in my community and watch them grow up; I like seeing my patients at the grocery store or while out hiking. So I very intentionally went about deciding whether to open my own business or try to join another here. We did a demographics study and the community could support another pediatric dentist; I wanted to be able to practice minimally invasive care with an emphasis on prevention and I knew that I could best do that by starting fresh. I leaned on friends who had gone through the process before and a friend I had made in the dental “industry” – together with a wonderful consultant, I found a great construction company and made my dream into a reality.

What should our readers know about your business?
My business is still new (less than a year old); I’m proud that we’ve been growing, I’m proud of the great team I have right now that understands my vision for the practice & makes sure that every child who comes to our office feels seen & understood. We focus on the experience of our patients; we make an environment that *can* be scary into something that isn’t scary. We focus on education, prevention and minimally invasive techniques whenever possible; we listen to our families and try our best to meet them where they are, with what they need and provide the highest quality, most compassionate and understanding care possible.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Boulder offers an incredible balance of things to do inside AND things to do outside. Any visit here (weather permitting (which it often is)) would include a hike. Our family’s favorite places are the trails near NCAR and Chautauqua (we live in South Boulder, clearly!). I’d probably try to get her to join me for one of my jiu jitsu classes at Easton where my kids & I go and which I think is an incredibly welcoming place. We love to go for long walks, so honestly we’d probably meander from my house, along bear canyon creek, down through Martin Park, grab food at Southern Sun and then probably something tasty at Sweet Sisters.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I give an incredible amount of credit to my family- my husband for supporting me through the long route it took to get here, my kids for making me smile the whole way through, my in-laws for giving great advice and my father, without whom absolutely none of this would have been possible. I also want to give a shout-out to so many of my patient’s parents who found my new office, followed me here, trust me with the care of their children and continue to tell their friends about me; we could not be a growing practice without them.

Website: https://www.sobopediatric.dental

Instagram: sobopediatricdentistry

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-graffeo-gardner-76b8b859

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100092385544720

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP-NMf-_pLmZ_3tSXhgdBBg

Image Credits
Personal Photo by Samantha Graffeo Gardner