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32 With a practice that has been owned and operated by the same family since 1967, one can instantly sense that it takes a strong team that works as a cohesive unit to maintain a great level of success. It takes strong values, a commitment to excellence and unwavering dedication in order to continue to grow for nearly 50 years. It also helps when everyone is treated like family, or 'la famiglia,' as Dr. Albert Pizzi will put it when referring to Artistic Dentistry of Hanover. Located at 125 Webster Street, Dr. Pizzi, his son, Dr. Kevin Pizzi (respectfully referred to as 'Dr. Kevin' by his team and his patients) and Dr. Mark Donelan have created a family-oriented business that has the entire staff and its patients telling you what sets them apart. As a former local recipient of the 'Businessman of the Year' award, given by the Hanover Chamber of Commerce, Dr. Pizzi said that he has "always surrounded himself with people better than him." Although, after having the opportunity to meet with Dr. Pizzi and his team, I am not sure that there are many people in the business who are on his level. Aside from his outstanding work as a dentist, Dr. Pizzi fully believes in creating an amazing work environment and giving back to the community. "We are extremely family-oriented," said Dr. Pizzi, who has been on the staff of Tufts University Dental School and Boston University Graduate School of Dentistry. "That has always been very important to me. In 1967, we started with three people. It was me, my wife and one dental assistant. We had no dental hygienist and two chairs. Early on, I also worked in another office part time after serving in the army for five years. As the practice began to grow, we started to expand and add more members to the team as well as more chairs. Now, we have 28 employees." Showing that Artistic Dentistry of Hanover is truly one big team that more resembles a family, many of their employees have been with Dr. Pizzi for well over 30 years. Kim Nawoichik has worked as an Office Manager and Chairside Dental Assistant for Dr. Pizzi for nearly three decades. "So many of us have been here since high school," says Nawoichik. "We have so many interns shadow us, as that is how the business continues to grow. Everyone here enjoys mentoring young people. It is very rewarding when an Intern graduates from college and returns to the practice as a member of the team." As everyone in the office will tell you, this is more of a family than it is an office team. This "awesome team," as Nawoichick put it, is "100 percent dedicated to this practice. We are all friends outside of the office. It is such a cohesive unit that works hard." With that being said, it certainly does not go unnoticed in terms of the level of dedication and commitment, as all three outstanding and generous doctors have not only had the entire team over to their house for social events, but have even gotten together to send everyone on a cruise as a team-building experience! Voted by the people as Hanover's No. 1 Dental Office, Artistic Dentistry of Hanover is "very thankful" for that honor, says Nawoichik. "That tells us that we are certainly doing something right, as being voted by our patients as the best dental office in town is a huge compliment." Countless customers have "told us that it has been the 'best dental experience' that they have ever had," she added. "We have even had patients who told us that they have never smiled before, only to leave here in tears about how happy they are after their dental experience. It is amazing! As the office manager, I love how we all interact with our patients. They come in to a beautiful office and see such a friendly team. Everyone here shares equally in our success." Speaking of one of Artistic Dentistry of Hanover's biggest successes, Dr. Pizzi and his team have made it a point to give back to the community as much as possible. Since 1968, he and his team have visited schools during the National Children's Dental Health Month each February. This past year, they saw over 1,300 students! They go to various schools in the area and show them videos about proper hygiene, what to eat and not to eat and to look at the labels. In addition to all of that, the team takes the kids on a 'shopping trip' and gives away goody bags and holds contests with fun prizes. Also, with the start of the new school year upon us all, Artistic Dentistry of Hanover can handle all of your back-to-school sports issues, starting with mouth guards for anyone who needs one for any sport. As anyone can tell you, the first line of defense against concussions is a properly fitting mouth guard. On top of their constant work with students, the doctors and their team give away so much dentistry to the community. They are proud members of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, and work closely with the Give Back a Smile program, which offers help to victims of domestic violence. As Dr. Pizzi put it, they are more than happy to "restore a smile to optimum dental health." In addition to that program, the team dedicates the entire month of October to Breast Cancer Awareness with Making Strides for Breast Cancer. A Artistic Dentistry of Hanover is All about Giving Back and Creating Smiles by Rob Kelley