Saluting Justin Rader: Dentist, dad, veteran who cares
Meet Dr. Justin Rader, a husband, father, veteran, dentist and Coeur d’Alene-ite. He grew up in Coeur d’Alene and went to Dalton Elementary, Canfield Middle School and Coeur d’Alene High School. He attended both University of Idaho and Boise State University, so his family can love and hate him at the same time for that rivalry.
He was active duty Army for five years and deployed to Baghdad, Iraq. He met and married his wife while in the military. After the deployment, he separated from active duty and pursued dental school to have a more family-oriented career.
His step-father, Jack Fullwiler DDS, had a great influence on him, helping him see the benefits of a dental career. He has a family history of military and medical/dental fields that made this combination great. There is a display case and photos in his dental office showing some of the family history in dentistry and the military.
Today he is the proud owner of Generations Dental, 1223 N. Government Way in Coeur d’Alene, and a member of the Idaho Army National Guard as a state dentist. (Learn more ar Generationsdentalcda.com.)
Generation: “I am part of Gen X. I have some of the typical likes of that generation, including ‘80s music and being cheesy. I do like dad jokes because my kids still laugh at them, but I understand that chapter will pass with eye-rolling and thus I will embarrass them with more bad dad jokes. My wife is the love of my life and puts up with my antics well.”
Career and community involvement: “I like helping in our community because the volunteerism that many people do can be done so easily in our own town. The overseas aid and work that people do is great and valued tremendously, but I believe it starts at home to have a solid foundation. The same goes for our faith and growth with relationships and our personal journeys like my faith in Jesus.”
1. What is something unique about your job that you really love?
“Working with people in a way that I can help them and get to know them. I appreciate people trusting me and I truly like when people are appreciative for even the smallest gestures; much less helping with people’s worries about their smile and health.”
2. Do you ever have teeth dreams, and if so, what is one you’ve had recently?
“I don’t have many dreams since I was deployed. I would say that I do think about the dental day’s specific procedures and next steps for people before I fall asleep at night.”
3. As an Army veteran, how do you feel when you are able to provide free services for other veterans who are homeless or in need?
“This is one of the best days of the year. We have immensely appreciative people and those that need it. Sometimes the help gets immediate joy when some front teeth are restored for a job interview or a bad infection resolved due to the intense pain it was causing. Being truly gracious and helpful feels good and others may do the same to make our community even better.”
4. What is something people would be surprised to learn about you?
“That I am an introvert. A non-shy introvert. I like to stay home and do things with my family. My wife and kids keep me busy while I am not at the office with family activities.”
5. Why do you feel it’s important that we support our veterans?
“Since I was not a dentist when I was active duty Army and deployed, I feel I can relate differently than other dentists to combat veterans. I feel it is my duty, like most veterans, to help veterans. Veterans Affairs does not help with dental unless they are 100 percent disabled by VA standards. And, the mouth is a greatly misunderstood environment. So, we can help with that.”