Scouting leads to a career rooted in service for first-year DDS student

If you would have asked young Rebekah “Beka” Muhlenkamp, DDS ’29, if she wanted to be a dentist when she grew up, she would have laughed. Dentistry wasn’t an obvious choice for Muhlenkamp, but looking back, her formative experiences led her to where she is today.

Growing up in a very small town—population 350—without its own dentist didn’t provide her with a lot of exposure to the dental profession. And when she finally did meet her dentist for the first time, she had a panic attack in her chair.

Most dentists wouldn’t see Muhlenkamp’s experience—which included avoiding the dentist after her panic attack, before ultimately having to return for an emergency root canal—and think she was a good candidate to encourage toward dentistry. But Heather Holt, DDS ’19, isn’t most dentists.

“She was interested, so I walked her through what we were doing that day,” recalled Holt. “Her eyes didn’t glaze over—and she continued to ask good questions.”

Noticing that Muhlenkamp asked quite a few questions during her root canal—Muhlenkamp describes herself as a “big question-asker” and “a yapper”—Holt asked Muhlenkamp if she’d considered pursuing dentistry. That’s a common theme for Holt, who shares her love of the profession with every young person that comes into her office. “We need more dentists in rural Minnesota,” she said.

Muhlennkamp hadn’t given it much thought. But Holt knew that Muhlenkamp was pursuing her Eagle Scout and sought additional merit badges, and she agreed when Muhlenkamp asked for her help to complete the dental merit badge.

Scouting was the perfect in-road for Muhlenkamp, who joined Scouting America in 2017 as soon as the organization opened to girls. After participating in Girl Scouts as a child and joining Ventures, a co-ed scouting organization as a teen, Muhlenkamp wanted something more. She saw her older brother climb through the ranks as a Scout and wished she could join him. She began working at Many Point Scout Camp, which she considered “a huge part of my character development.” There, she taught merit badges, led troop activities and experienced as much of scouting as she could—which was more than enough to deepen her love for the organization.

Muhlenkamp was 17 when Scouting America transitioned to co-educational opportunities, and she jumped at the opportunity to join. With a one-year extension beyond the traditional age-18 deadline for Eagle Scout status, Muhlenkamp had a lot of work to do. She started with the medicine merit badge, expecting to pursue pre-medicine as an undergraduate. But when Holt started to show her more about dentistry, Muhlenkamp was intrigued.

“Every dentist I’ve ever met has been the epitome of a great person,” she shared. “And I started to notice a lot of parallels to scouting. Scouting has the 12 points of the Scout Law, and I find that dentistry really hits those points crystal clear.”

Holt was “shocked and impressed” when Muhlenkamp came to her recall appointment with “a printed and stapled stack of papers about the dentistry merit badge.” Holt enjoyed the experience of “getting to talk to someone in dentistry about this career that I love.”

Working with Holt on her merit badge, Muhlenkamp honed her understanding of what a dental career would be—analyzing her own X-rays, practicing fillings on Holt’s typodont and studying the basics of oral health. The experience was formative for Holt and for Muhlenkamp. “She was one of the first dentists that I felt really cared about me,” Muhlenkamp reflected.

Muhlenkamp and Holt maintain a special connection: Holt came to Muhlenkamp’s White Coat Ceremony, and they recently discovered that Muhlenkamp sits at Holt’s old bench in pre-clinic. But their love for service and oral health care is what connects them beyond all else.

Muhlenkamp is excited for all that’s to come over the next four years—though it’s just getting started, she’s already loving dental school and fitting right in. In fact, she just became President of her class. While she looks forward to whatever the future holds, for now, she’s just grateful for the path she’s on and excited to see how she can serve her classmates and her community.

“At the end of the day, I just want to make a difference,” she said. “I want to be able to meet anxious patients like myself, and be an empathetic provider. And for the next four years, I just want to squeeze in every experience and make the most of my time.”

And Holt is confident that Muhlenkamp will do just that. “This girl is going places,” she said. “I’m lucky I got to be the dentist and friend along for the ride.”