Houlton dentist, 72, still fills need, teeth

HOULTON – Dr. Donald Woods wakes up every morning, gets dressed and walks across the road to the dental office that he shares with his son, Dr. Karl Woods, on McSheffery Road.

He spends 41/2 days a week in his light-blue smock, bent over his dentist’s chair, cleaning teeth, filling cavities and curing the pain that comes with a cracked tooth or a broken filling.

He doesn’t think that what he does is anything out of the ordinary, but others would disagree.

Especially when they find out he’s 72 years old.

Woods has been practicing dentistry for more than 43 years in Houlton, treating children who have grown to adulthood and gone on to have children and grandchildren of their own. A father of four, he is a man who loves life and everything in it, especially his work.

“I think dentistry is one of the best professions in the world,” Woods said recently at the home he shares with Helen, his wife of nearly 46 years. “I especially love encouraging the children that I see, telling them that they can accomplish anything that they set out to do.”

Growing up on a farm, Woods rarely thought of doing anything but farming. In his senior year of high school, however, he had a change of heart. Realizing he needed more education before moving on to college, Woods enrolled in preparatory school and spent two years there before he was accepted into college.

He stayed 19 days, and then the Korean War broke out.

Drafted into the Army, Woods left school and served two years in Europe before returning to Mount Allison College in Sackville, New Brunswick. After four years there, he graduated and moved on to Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Four years later, he was a dentist.

Woods moved back to Houlton and started a practice downtown, staying there until 1986, when he joined his son Karl at their current location.

“Growing up, I always admired my father’s profession,” Karl Woods said. “I knew that I would end up back in Maine practicing with my dad.”

Through the years, the elder Woods has treated all kinds of patients, in all types of situations. He has come into the office late at night and early in the morning, on weekends and holidays.

“We are the emergency room,” Woods said of his office. “Pain really doesn’t take a holiday.”

Since he began practicing, Woods has never turned down a client due to an inability to pay. He remains one of the few dentists in the area who accepts MaineCare (Medicaid), and has never sent a delinquent bill to a collection agency.

“I don’t worry about getting paid,” Woods said. “Life has used me awfully good, and I know that it will all come out fine in the end.

“I am in the health profession, and pain is pain. When people come in with pain and a sad, hurt expression on their face, they leave with a smile because I have helped their pain go away. There is a lot to be said for that.”

Along with working, Woods exercises frequently, logging 40 to 50 miles a month on his treadmill. He travels extensively and spends free time with his family, which includes five grandchildren.

Woods credits his success to his wife, Helen, who has supported him through some difficult times.

He called his co-workers a “tremendous team,” saying that a day never passes without their laughing together.

“I would encourage all young people today to go into the health field,” Woods said. “You sometimes hear people say that the education is too hard or too expensive. But it is all worth it, no matter how much you have to go through. In the end, it’s just all worth it.”

With his 73rd birthday coming up in April, Woods still has no plans for retirement.

“I’ll know that I’m not needed any more when my office phone stops ringing,” Woods said with a smile. “So, for now, I think I’ll just leave my retirement up to someone else.”