DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS IN DENTISTRY AWARD
Timothy R. Kinzel, D.D.S., Dent ’84
Madison, Wis.
Dr. Timothy Kinzel says that, for a pediatric dentist, success is easy to define: “If we could get to the end of the day and were able to say we did some really good work, that was enough.” By that definition, thanks to his work with children and patients with special needs for more than 35 years, Tim has had more than his share of success.
As a recent retiree, Tim looks back on his time at Marquette and says it, “helped me realize that no matter their economic status or abilities, all people deserve the best care we can offer.” It is a philosophy he put into practice every day at the Children's Dental Center of Madison that he co-founded.
Tim served as president of the Dane County Dental Society and the Wisconsin Society of Pediatric Dentists, but it was his work with patients with special health care and dental needs that he found most fulfilling. “Helping people with disabilities or challenging medical histories is very rewarding and being able to help people who have limited access to dental care and no other options for treatment is very satisfying.”
When told of the award, Tim felt incredibly humbled. “The list of past recipients of this award reads like a who's who of people that I consider the heroes of the Marquette University School of Dentistry. To think that I would be somehow included on the list is so humbling that I can only hope to honor the award in a comparable manner to those prior to me,” he says.
Favorite Marquette Memory
There are so many good memories it is hard to choose just one. As a student, I made a free throw with no time left on the clock to win the Marquette University Intramural Basketball Championship.
Our anatomy professor, Dr. Peter Austin, became a dental student. As a Pediatric Resident, one of our responsibilities was to staff/ teach in the pediatric clinic a half day a week. I ended up having to staff and grade Dr. Austin when he did his Pediatric rotation. It was a little strange being the teacher to one of your teachers. He was great about it, but I think I probably gave him a better grade than he gave me in Anatomy.
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