By Sara StrongIt’s not that Dr. Mark Bierma has had great experiences at the dentist office. But when it came time to choose a profession, working with his hands, business ownership and healthcare made a nice combination for Luverne’s newest dentist."I really enjoy working in fine detail and daily interactions with people," Bierma said. "I considered becoming a medical doctor, and doing surgery, but I had a neighbor who was a dentist. He was good at explaining the field to me and urging me to go toward it too."How Bierma came to Luverne — in a time when dentists are in demand across the country in cities of all sizes — was a lifestyle choice."It was the community that swayed my choice," Bierma said.For a couple years, the Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce has been advertising at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry and attending job fairs there. Chamber Director Dave Smith said he’s happy that Luverne was able to attract Bierma.Mark’s wife, Aleta, is a pediatric nurse, and they have an infant daughter, Katelyn. Aleta grew up in a smaller town and Mark has grown to enjoy country living more than the Metro area he’s been in for the past eight years."It came down to quality of life issues for my wife and me. My hobbies are hunting and fishing and camping and I didn’t want to have to drive to get to those kind of places," Bierma said.It’s costing Bierma $270,000 to take over the retiring Dr. Bill Bollinger’s practice in Luverne, not counting personal student loans. The Luverne Economic Development Authority is guaranteeing $20,000 in loan money as a measure of support from the city.Dr. David Born is a professor at the U of M School of Dentistry and said Bierma is a minority among recent grads, choosing to locate in a smaller city."It’s a bigger risk to locate in a rural area, because if things don’t work out, you have to pay to move your family and business again," Born said.Born talked about the shortage of dentists overall and said that some estimates say as much as 40 percent of vacancies in the central United States will go unfilled after retirements.There are a good number of dentists graduating from schools, but that doesn’t cover the estimated amount of retirements that will come in the next 10 years."One good thing," Born said, "is that there will be multiple opportunities for dentists after they graduate."
