Dr. Major William Tappan
March 18, 1924 - November 13, 2013
Dr. Major William Tappan was born in Chester, Pennsylvania on March 18, 1924 and raised by his parents in Roselle, NJ. After graduating high school, he earned a bachelor’s degree (1945) and Ph.D. (1948) from Howard University in Washington, DC. During the Korean Conflict, he served his country as a dentist for the United States Army. In 1953 he returned to Roselle and opened and operated his own practice until 1964. After successfully operating his practice Dr. Tappan completed a one-year dental residency with the New Jersey State Department of Health as part of his graduate education at Columbia University where he earned a master’s degree in public health. In 1967 Dr. Tappan accepted a position in Denver, CO as the Director of Dental Services for Denver General Hospital, known today as Denver Health. As director, he became an advocate for the use of sealants in pediatric dentistry and began applying them in the 1970s. He also worked as a dental consultant for Region 8 of Job Corp. During his 30year tenure, he received many awards for his selfless dedication in the management of seven city wide dental clinics. Some of the awards received are the Myron Allukian Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Achievements in Community Dental Programs by the American Association for Community Dental Programs and the Dr. Bernard F. Gipson Sr. Health Leadership Award from the Center for African American Health. Dr. Tappan assured that good dental care was a part of the Salud Family Health Centers in Colorado, in addition to serving on their board. He was vice president of the National Network for Oral Health Access for 14 years and a leading advocate for the inclusion of dental healthcare in community health centers. He was very well known and respected in the dental public health community of Colorado. After he retired from Denver Health in his 70s he wanted to continue to serve the community. He opened another dental practice called Dental Access Center to continue serving the under privileged people of Denver. Dr. Tappan had many passions outside of dentistry. He was most passionate about gardening. One of his last projects was the Oasis Project whose focus was bringing farm produce to food deserts. He was also a talented artist and enjoyed carving gourds and painting. Dr. Major Tappan is survived by his wife of 23 years, Maria Tappan, and many step-children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and stepgreat grandchildren.
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Denver Urban Spectrum — www.denverurbanspectrum.com – January 2014
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