Branch Served:
- Navy (4 years active duty and 8 years reserve)
About Jonathan Bultema
Dr. Jonathan Bultema is a native of Fargo. He received his Bachelor of Science from NDSU. Following this, he attended the University of Southern California School of Dentistry in Los Angeles, CA where he received his Doctor of Dental Surgery. Dr. Bultema served in the US Navy as a Dental Officer in Kaneohe Bay, HI, Corpus Christi, and Kingsville, TX. He then spent the next few years serving the dental needs of his local communities of Fargo-Moorhead at a Community Health Center. Dr. Bultema is also a member of the North Dakota Dental Association, American Dental Association, and Academy of General Dentistry as well as a member of the Heartland Study Club and Southeast District Dental Society.
Dr. Bultema enjoys spending time with his wife and four children. In the summers, his family is busy with lake activities like swimming, and boating, and he also enjoys insect collecting, and gardening. He also enjoys hunting, motorcycling, his kids’ school activities, and snow skiing. A year-round favorite activity is LEGO building.
Q. What was your first job after service and what was that experience like?
A: My first civilian job was working at Family Healthcare in downtown Fargo as a dentist. My family and I were excited to return to Fargo after being gone for eights years and to be close to our grandparents and our entire family. I was a dentist both in the Navy and at family healthcare after my active duty, so the dentistry daily was similar, and, actually, both locations had very transient populations. In the Military, many of your patients are heading to deployments or changing duty stations and moving around the world. At Family Healthcare, there are many people who are passing from place to place or come in only for emergencies and you don’t see them consistently. The experiences were different though in our family and we no longer had the consistency or guarantee of home and healthcare and provision. These are all things you need to now be mindful of to provide opportunities for your family rather than them being provided by the government.
Q. Did you have any struggles after returning to civilian life?
A: Leaving the Military has many freedoms but it also brings unknowns and you lose the feeling that “you are taken care of.” In the military, you are often told what to do, when to do it, and where to go—so you have a lot of “non-choices” and you get accustomed to that. When you get out of the military, you have to choose your life and provide for yourself. You search for a job that can provide healthcare for your family and enough provision to have a good roof over your head in a place that has good schools to help your children thrive.
In the military, they provide you with all the tools and equipment you need to do your occupation. Outside of the military, you are responsible for getting your own tools and continuing to learn how to manage your own expenses for your trade and for your family’s needs.
It was interesting that in the military, even though I was a dentist, I could not treat my family’s dental needs because dependents would utilize insurance to be seen outside the military system. I was thankful to begin to treat my family’s dental needs when out of the military.
Q: Can you tell me about your company?
A: Maple Family Dental has been open for eight years and exists to care about people, serve through dentistry, and positively influence the community. We provide comprehensive family dentistry so that a family’s dental needs can be met all in one convenient location. Our three focuses are Experience, Education, and Excellence. We educate children and do preventative dentistry in schools and in the community to help reach the underserved. We also travel abroad to provide dental services to underserved countries. We collaborate with local organizations within our community to make a positive impact on the Red River Valley.
Q: Did you plan to start your company before enlisting in the service?
A: I graduated with a degree in Management Information Systems (MIS) from NDSU in 2003 with hopes that I would one day own a business and serve my community through dentistry.
Q: What does a normal day on the job look like for you?
A: Our days start early with treating patients starting at 7 a.m. to help those who need care before they head towards their own adventurous days. Daily, we serve our community within the clinic walls. Some highlights are seeing a person who walked into our dental office in pain, leave without pain. The ability to have helped someone physically, emotionally, and sometimes socially, by improving their smile, is so rewarding. Another highlight is coming alongside parents in making their kids’ first dental encounters fun ones as it builds their positive experiences, which improves their desire to return and—thus creating healthy habits for their entire lives.
Our community involvement is one of our greatest joys! Our school program provides preventative dentistry to underserved children and gets them the treatment they need to be healthy. Being out and about between trunk or treats, music festivals, fundraisers, community dental days, overseas dental missions, providing volunteer experience for predental students, etc. is some of what we are all about.
Q: How did your family react when you told them you were pursuing service?
A: My wife was supportive of joining the Navy when we evaluated the cost of dental school. My family was also supportive of joining the Navy as they took great pride that their son or family member was sacrificing and serving their country. It was a great honor.
Q: What do you remember about your first day of business?
A: It was very exciting and a bit frightening! It’s exciting to finally do what you worked so hard to create but also you ask yourself, “Is this going to work because I don’t have an unlimited budget.” “Will patients show up?” “Will we make ends meet?” In the military, you never had to deal with that. How to be profitable was not something you learned in the military.
Q: Has your service experience changed your business mindset?
A: Whether in the service or out of the service, it’s an honor to serve your community and your country. Maple Family Dental is the way I get to serve when no longer in the service. There are things that I am more mindful of now as a business owner. There was a lot of waste in the government and my goal was to be frugal and reduce waste. I found out that I wanted to have long-term relationships with my patients and, as cheesy as it sounds, grow old with them. I wanted to see their families grow and experience life’s ups and downs. The military allowed me to see the beauty of working with many different diverse backgrounds and the skills talents and strengths that different people bring to the table.
Q: Have you found any specific resources or support networks that have been instrumental in your entrepreneurial journey as a veteran?
A: Truthfully, the local Heartland Study Club has been a place of great support as it is local dentists who train together, talk shop, and have the comradery of the profession and many have also served in the military prior so we have many shared values.
Q: What was the hardest challenge in opening your business?
A: Even though Maple is all about our team now, the start of it was a doctor and his wife just “figuring it out.” Doing it on our own, securing the finances, learning business proposals, contracts, land contracts, etc. All these things you never had to be mindful of in the Navy and didn’t have to work with a bank when in the service. It was a lot of work, and took a lot of time away from my growing children at the time—all to build something that would pour back into them and pour into our community.
Q: What does being a veteran symbolize to you?
A: It symbolizes sacrifice to your country and to others. My experience was a willingness, not forced. I felt it was my duty to serve the land that has given me freedom and opportunity. I understand that not all can serve, but I knew that I could… so I did.
Q: Who are your biggest mentors?
A: I have had many mentors along the way! In my young years, my mom, Cindy Wiger, taught me many valuable lessons! In high school and college, Pastor Cal Thompson and Pastor Brad Lewis guided me in my journey to know and serve Jesus. In doctorate school, Dr. Mike Roberts and Dr. Kim Nordberg introduced me to Dental Missions and the continued joy of using your profession to serve the underserved. I still have men, today, who walk beside me in this journey of dentistry, the importance of fatherhood and family, and as a believer in Christ. We always need to do life with community.
Q: What advice do you have for other businesses out there?
A: Don’t be intimidated to step out and follow your dreams and goals. We have one life to live and try stuff! You may not always be successful, but learn from it and move forward to the next thing. Don’t forget the people that got you to where you were at. And don’t forget the family that supports you as they grow and need you more than you know!
Q: Do you have any book recommendations?
A: The Bible… The words of life for everyone in every situation.
Q: What advice do you have for others considering enlisting?
A: Look at all the pros and cons of your life situation. Talk to advisors, family, etc. Think about all you have and how you can give back. If you do enlist, get everything in writing. Enjoy your time and new experiences. And ask for the duty station you are dreaming of. In our case, despite the odds, we ended up in Hawaii… a dream come true. No North Dakotan ever thinks they are going to live on the ocean, but because I stepped out of the box, even when they said it would never happen… It happened.
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