WHY SHE WAS NOMINATED:

Dr. Ball purchased a downtown Portland practice three years ago and has grown the business each year since. Philanthropy is important, too: She participates in and helps finance mission trips to Mexico, Honduras, the Dominican Republic and Brazil; she also attends fundraisers for organizations such the Cascades AIDS Project, a Portland-based HIV prevention and support group, and Make-a-Wish Oregon.

INSPIRATION:

“People who never stop trying to be better. No one at my office is OK being average, and that inspires me to be better every day.”

WHY SHE BECAME A DENTIST:

“Dentistry changes and saves lives. I’ve provided dentistry abroad, where extracting a tooth may be the difference between life and death, and I’ve done dentistry  in Portland, where I’m changing the way a person feels about his or her smile — or actually giving someone a smile. I feel blessed and honored to be a dentist.”

SAGE ADVICE:

“Put the patient first, and the rest will follow. Also, dentistry is about educating patients, not trying to sell them something. Educate them, then let them decide what’s best for themselves.”