Pediatric dentist persevered and has reached his dream

Best-selling author Anne Lamott once said, “Hope begins in the dark, the stubborn hope that if you just show up and try to do the right thing the dawn will come. You wait and watch and work: You don’t give up.”

Lamott’s quote could have been written about Jay Enzler’s life. Abandoned by his mother at an early age to a world of hardship, then moved to a foreign land where cultural differences made adapting extremely difficult, Enzler persevered. He overcame the odds to create a better life and dedicated that life to helping other children as a pediatric dentist.

Born in 1976 to a single mother in Seoul, South Korea, he was left at an orphanage at age 5. The orphanage had 20 caretakers overseeing 100 children.

“I thought it would only be for a few days. After a few weeks I realized she wasn’t coming back. It was very heartbreaking,” Enzler said.

Enzler turned 6 a few months after he arrived, and once the children turned 6, the caretakers put them to work. Each day he performed chores at 5 a.m., cleaning a section of the building before breakfast. After breakfast, the children were forced to work around the orphanage for 10 to 12 hours a day, seven days a week.

Most of the labor involved working on the orchard. The work was difficult and according to Enzler, the children would try to get stung by bees to avoid working in the fields.

Working outside, Enzler and the other children endured extreme weather conditions.

Each child was given one pair of rubber shoes and socks. “The rubber shoes got so cold I got frost bite on my feet. I still have the scars,” Enzler said.

The caretakers aggressively enforced the rules. For example, during the winter months, a rebellious child was forced to hold a steel pipe without any clothing. Other methods of punishment included beatings by a baseball bat on the backs of the legs. They would hit the legs so hard the skin would split. After the beating, the children were forced to continue working.

After enduring seven years of hardship and fear, his life changed. At age 12, he was one of a few children sponsored by the orphanage to outside adoption agencies.

Soon word came he was being adopted by a family in Fairfield.

Enzler stayed with a transition family for a week before being put on a plane for the 15-hour flight to America. At the airport, he met his stepsister, Kim Enzler, for the first time. His new parents, Sue and Jim Enzler, had adopted her from a different orphanage in Korea.

Cultural differences quickly dimmed the hope for a good life. He could only communicate using facial expressions, body movements, pictures and sign language.

He internalized his frustration and began to rebel. In middle school, he was paddled so much that one time he broke into the school, stole all the teachers’ paddles and smashed them into pieces.

“I needed someone to listen and being in trouble forced people to talk to me.”

In spite of all the trouble, there was some good in his life. He met a girl named Nikki on the very first day of school in the United States. Throughout high school, Enzler and Nikki dated and in December 1988 they married.

After graduating from Liberty High School in 1987, Enzler was determined to have a better life. He signed up for the G.I. Bill and joined the Navy.

On board the USS Leahy, he experienced severe motion sickness. He got so sick he lost a great deal of weight and was placed on shore duty for three months.

After the three months, he was released from his tour of duty and sent back to the states. His dreams of college were fading. Not giving up, he sent numerous letters to Rep. Tom Foley requesting the chance to go to college using the G.I. Bill. He eventually was granted permission.

Winter quarter 1989 he enrolled at Spokane Falls Community College. In fall 1989 he transferred to Eastern Washington University. In 1994 he graduated with an interdisciplinary studies degree in science and enrolled in dental school at Creighton University, Omaha, Neb.

In 1998, he graduated with a doctorate of dental surgery. In 2001, with a strong desire to help children, he enrolled in the University of Washington to study pediatric dentistry.

According to Enzler, the pediatric dentistry program at UW is the hardest in the country to get into. The year he applied, more than 200 applicants nationwide applied for four openings. He was one of the four accepted into the program.

While trying to build a new career, he was also working on building a family. The Enzler’s had three children between the years of 1992 and 1997, making his college years more challenging.

After getting his degree in 2003, he returned to Spokane and pursued his dream of owning his own children’s dental practice.

“I always wanted to work with children. I want to make a difference in their lives.”

In January 2004 he opened The Children’s Dental Village, 420 N. Evergreen Road.

Living the childhood he was forced to live gave him a genuine love for children and a true sense of how to treat others with respect. This is reflected in the success of his businesses. People come from as far as Ritzville, Tri-Cities and Colville to seek his care.

Although Enzler endured great hardship, he never regrets his suffering. He believes it made him a better person.

“No matter how tough life is there is always hope,” said Enzler.