Ramon M. Ortiz, DDS
After being born in Massachusetts, moving to California as a child, and growing up in New Mexico, Dr. Ramon found that he rather enjoyed variety in his life. While attending Onate High School after moving to Las Cruces, Dr. Ramon would study diligently with his sights set on becoming a health care professional someday. In the summers, however, he would work at NMSU performing landscaping duties to balance out the time spent indoors during the school year. One thing was consistent between school and summer and that was that whenever there was free time available most of it went towards playing the guitar; both electric and acoustic. Dr. Ramon was even given the honor to perform the class song at his graduation ceremony.
After graduation, Dr. Ramon traded warm weather for cold and moved to Omaha, Nebraska where he would spend eight straight years as a full-time student obtaining both his degree in theology and his Doctorate in Dental Surgery from Creighton University. It was at Creighton that he met his wife Dr. Natalie J. Ortiz. Part of the Creighton University mission statement is the notion of “service to others,” and the principle that it is important to give back to the community and be active in the betterment of society. After taking that to heart, Dr. Ramon and his wife moved back to New Mexico, a state in desperate need of dentists and other health professionals, and worked at a community health care center for some time. It was a very personally rewarding experience for both Drs. Ramon and Natalie, and one which helped them decide to remain in New Mexico and continue to serve its community through their own practice, Painted Skies Dental Center.
Viewing dentistry as a beautiful balance between science, art and engineering, Dr. Ramon has found that same feeling of variety in his profession that he loves in his life-and hopes he can share the happiness it brings him with the patients he has the opportunity to serve.
Natalie J. Ortiz, DDS
Dentistry became a part of Dr. Natalie’s life when she started working in a dental office her senior year of high school in Seattle, Washington. Her oldest sister is a dental hygienist and introduced her to the profession. She has been given the chance to see all aspects of a dental practice. She started out by filing charts and cleaning the office, and later was trained to be a chairside assistant and worked in the front office. It was clear by the time she graduated from high school she would pursue dentistry herself. She started her bachelor’s degree in biology at the University of Washington while taking the necessary pre-requisites for dental school. Four years later, she graduated and was accepted to Creighton University School of Dentistry in Omaha, Nebraska. Continuing to work in a dental office throughout her undergraduate studies allowed her to understand what it means to be a dentist and the responsibility and compassion it takes to be a great dentist.
During her four years in dental school she met her husband Dr. Ramon, and together they graduated and moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico. Due to the shortage of dental providers in the state, they felt this would be an ideal way to start their careers and give back to the community. Working in a community health center was a great experience. Now that they have their own practice, they feel like a permanent part of the community and have enjoyed the warm welcome they have received.