Whitman Family Dental

Bringing Advanced Dental Solutions to Colfax, WA

Community-Centered Modern Dentistry

On a Tuesday evening in March 2020, a three-alarm fire broke out in a historic building in downtown Colfax, WA, burning beloved local Fonks Coffeehouse to the ground.

Two doors down was Whitman Family Dental. While firefighters from nearby areas worked to contain the fire practically next door, Dr. Matt Mellor rushed to save whatever he could of his dental equipment.

“I was hustling to get the computers out, my mind was racing—I had just bought my pano from Burkhart a couple of months ago,” he recalled.

There were still months to go before the completion of his new office blocks away, and he was already under a shutdown order from COVID. Smoke and water damage, combined with the pandemic, caused the practice to be completely down for a few months. Dr. Mellor credits the Colfax community for their support throughout.

“It was really cool to be part of the community…they shut down the lights of the whole downtown. We were in there with flashlights, & people were helping me grab computers, hard drives, trying to get as much of my digital stuff out.”

“It was very stressful at the time, but looking back, it was kind of funny. We were just running back and forth until the fire department finally kicked us out.” This experience highlights the strong sense of community in Colfax. Dr. Mellor embodies this spirit in his practice, ensuring that his patients, many of whom travel quite a distance to see him, receive same-day care regardless of their diagnosis. He prides himself on his advanced technology and his commitment to expanding his knowledge to address a wide range of dental issues.

Having grown up in the area, with his family and parents still living there, Dr. Mellor is deeply connected to the community.

His interest in dentistry was sparked in childhood by his positive experiences with his hometown family dentist. With a father who is a local family physician and a grandfather who was a dentist in Spokane, Dr. Mellor spent much of his childhood in his father’s practice.

During high school, he shadowed a dentist and enjoyed the experience, further solidifying his desire to pursue dentistry. He attended the University of Washington and later joined the army, where he completed his dental training. After graduating, he served four years of active duty in Korea and at Walter Reed.

When the opportunity arose to move back home and purchase the same practice he grew up going to, the timing worked out perfectly. Dr. Mellor had a plan of what he wanted for his office before he left the military. He is a planner, and he had been sketching out designs and flow for his new office during downtime.

About a year into private practice, he and his team were able to move into the new office, and after the COVID shutdowns and the coffeehouse fire, they were finally able to open in July 2020.

The practice is on the upstairs of a two-story building along with other medical offices. They recently added another chair and a third hygienist. It currently runs with six fixed operatories but is designed and plumbed to grow to nine when necessary, and every room is designed to have the flexibility to do everything.

His equipment choices drove his design for the office’s look. Burkhart Equipment Specialist Klint Croucher came in to consult and help solidify his choices.

“One thing that always drove me crazy [was that] dental clinics always felt really tight and cramped, and I hated that,” said Dr. Mellor. “So then just talking with Klint and figuring out, OK, what are my options to develop a system that flows really well that feels spacious, that feels open?”

After a trip to Newburg to visit A-dec with Burkhart, he also worked with an interior designer on the look. He ultimately chose A-dec dental chairs and sterilization equipment.

“I want to be able to provide care as quickly and as effectively as possible,” says Dr. Mellor. “Being down in Whitman County, it’s not like they’re all in one town. Here, we’ve got lots of people traveling, from 45 minutes, an hour, hour and a half away, just with these outside farming communities, so trying to save them trips is really important to me.”

In the past couple of years, Dr. Mellor’s main focus has been on 3D design and printing. His significant investments in these areas have enabled him to produce nightguards, dentures, implant guides, and, recently, crowns using his newly purchased SprintRay Midas unit. This technology allows him greater control over the design process, which is especially important given the lack of nearby dental labs. He has dedicated countless weekends and nights to mastering Exocad and other design systems, aiming to make digital design a cornerstone of his practice. The ability to create Midas 3D printed veneers has been particularly beneficial.

“Dentures can be one of the most frustrating things in dentistry. But having now 3D printed, if somebody breaks a denture, instead of me trying to finagle a fix… I just press print…and they have a brand new one.”

After years of tedious pouring, casting, and setting, trying to get resin to flow in, or sending it off to the lab for 2-3 weeks, Dr. Mellor thinks that getting results in a few hours or a day is tremendously time-saving, and frankly, pretty cool.

“We can do things better and get better aesthetic results than you would by throwing these huge composites in there, which can do a good job. We just have better technology at our hands these days.”

He’s gotten so into 3D printing that he even prints out toys for the kids in his practice. He recently completed a year-long course in implantology, which has allowed him to develop those skills, reducing the need to refer patients out for implants. Dr. Mellor takes pride in being a ‘one-stop’ shop for his community, continually learning new skills to better serve his patients.

In the end, says Dr. Mellor, “I just really want to be the person that people could rely on. If somebody can rely on you to take care of them, make sure they’re getting the best care possible, they’re going to have confidence that, no matter what, they’re gonna be taken care of.”

And that café that caught on fire? The building had to be completely reconstructed, but Fonks Coffeehouse officially reopened in November of 2024.

Getting Started with 3D Printing

Looking to implement 3D printing in your practice but not sure where to start? Here are Dr. Mellor’s tips:

• Make the Commitment
  In the world of dentistry, it’s a fairly low investment, he says. Know and be ready to be committed to the process.
• Start Simple
  Dr. Mellor initially started with just printing simple night guards, an accessible but important patient device. Start with one service and develop from there.
• Learn the Basics
  There are steps you will need to know, and there is always a learning curve. Work at it until you get comfortable.
• Be Open to New Possibilities
  The world of 3D printing has blown up in the last few years. You will always have kinks to work through, says Dr. Mellor. “But once you do that, it…opens up a massive avenue for growth.”

 

 

Learn more about Whitman Family Dental

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Written by Dawn Kahl

Published in Catalyst – Q3 2025.

Category: Office Planning & Design, Technology

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