ODA PAST PRESIDENT SPOTLIGHT
Tamara Berg, DDS (2010 to 2011) By Makenzie Dean, ODA Programs and Operations Manager If you are a member of the dental community, Dr. Tamara Berg is probably a name that you recognize. She served as President of the Oklahoma Dental Association from 2010 to 2011 but has been involved in countless councils and committees ever since she was a dental student at the OU College of Dentistry. Berg discovered early on that she wanted to pursue a career where she could help others and change their smiles. She started her own orthodontic treatment at the age of 13 and did not like her smile at the time. Correcting her smile helped her discover her desire to be in dentistry and blossomed her own self-confidence. Though Berg is originally from Austin, TX, she crossed the Red River to attend Southern Nazarene University in 1987 and later chose to attend the University of Oklahoma’s College of Dentistry where she graduated in 1995. After she did an associateship for a few years, she purchased a practice in Yukon, OK in 1998
and remains there to this day. Dr. Berg and her husband, Lowell, celebrate their 30-year anniversary this June. They first met at Southern Nazarene University and were married just before she started dental school. Together they have two sons – Karsten and Clayton. Karsten plays Division II basketball at SNU, the school where his parents met, and Clayton is a sophomore in high school and a state qualifier in swimming. Berg notes that she has always had a passion for organized dentistry. She took steps in leadership that prepared her to be the ODA President from 2010 to 2011. She was active in as many councils and committees that she could be in since dental school. She served as the President of the Oklahoma Association of Women Dentists twice, in 1998 and in 2006, and as the President of the Oklahoma County Dental Society from 2003 to 2004. More recently, she served as the National President of the
American Association of Women Dentists in 2018. Berg most enjoyed the chance to represent our state and Oklahoma dentists at national events during her presidential term. It was there that she was able to meet people from around the nation and gained rewarding friendships. With the many opportunities that come with the title of ODA President, there also come some challenges. That same year, the ODA fought a denturist bill during the Legislative session and hosted an OkMOM during a snowstorm that kept a third of the
Dr. Tamara Berg with family.
FUN FAC TS: • What is one thing that most people do not know about you? Our family has gone plant based and we no longer eat meat or dairy. • If you could have dinner with one famous person, who would it be and why? I would love to have a faceto-face conversation with Jesus. I would ask about things along my journey but would also want to know why we have mosquitos. • What hobbies do you enjoy? I enjoy gardening, scrapbooking and reading.
34 journal | May/June 2021
