Dr. Katie ToThe Wellness Dentist, CEO and Founder of Center for Wellness Dentistry and Wellness Dentist Institute.

Her Dad Inspired Her to Become a Dentist — Here's the Story

14 Sept 2026 · 1 min

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In this excerpt from Dr. Katie To’s YouTube video, she recounts how her father, Mark Ioka, a community dentist, was always present and actively helped patients throughout the town, even on holidays like Christmas Eve. She describes how strangers would recognize her father and thank him for relieving their pain, which left a strong impression on her. Witnessing his dedication and community service motivated her to apply to dental school, aspiring to emulate his example and serve her own community in the same compassionate manner.

Chapters

Yeah, that was— it was the opposite of what you just said about Dad being stressed out or parents being stressed out, never home. Dad was home. And one of my favorite things that really stuck in my head and really helped drive me to want to actually apply to dental school is when we would go out literally anywhere in town, Dad knew minimum of 3 people, uh, just walking around and Always I had people coming up to me, oh, Mark Ioka is your dad? He helped me get out of pain. He came to the office on Christmas Eve and helped me do this. And your dad is great. And I'm like, I want to be able to help people in my community like that. Wow. Your dad actually lead by example.