Dr. Cook grew up in Auburn, Maine, where she attended Edward Little High School. Her career in dentistry actually began as a teenager helping at her fathers dental practice. After high school, she attended Fayetteville Technical Community College and received her Associate of Science Degree in Dental Hygiene in 1990. While working full-time, Dr. Cook then attended Fayetteville State University and received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology in 1996.
Dr. Cook was a hygienist for 15 years before being fortunate enough to be accepted into dental school at The Medical University of South Carolina, which is a top rated dental and medical school located in Charleston, SC. She graduated with her Doctor of Medical Dentistry (DMD) degree in 2005. She joined her fathers dental practice in May 2005. In 2006, she began to look for the perfect practice to call her own. That dream became a reality in July 2007, when she purchased the practice from long term owner, Dr. Ronald Sawyer.
Dr. Cook is a member of The Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) and is currently working towards her Fellowship with the AGD, when achieved is only held by 7% of the general dentists in the United States. The Fellow requires 500 hours of continuing education and Dr. Cook has over 900 hours of continuing education. She will soon be joining the other 34 Fellows in the AGD in the State of Maine. Beginning in 2010, Dr. Cook has participated in the local study club in affiliation with Spear Education. Spear Study Clubs are to help foster interdisciplinary relationships for better treatment planning and patient care. There are only approximately 200 study clubs in North America. After attending the 2.5 day Spear seminar in December 2011, Dr. Cook joined the Faculty Club at Spear Education. The Faculty Club focuses on patient-centric dental healthcare and advanced clinical techniques to enable Dr. Cook to provide better patient care. Their are currently 660 members in the Faculty Club throughout the world with only 8 members in Maine. The Faculty Club consists of members from 9 countries; United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Bermuda, Czech Republic, Denmark and Sweden. Dr. Cook is also a member of the American Dental Association (ADA), the Maine Dental Association (MDA), and the Merrymeeting Bay Dental Association.
In 2004, Dr. Cook went on a mission trip to Brazil to set up a dental clinic in an all girls orphanage. Dr. Cook is also a proud participant in Give Kids a Smile Day, where thousands of the nations dentists and their dental team members provide free oral health care services to children from low-income families. We have been participating with Give Kids a Smile Day since 2011. On an annual basis, Dr. Cook partners with the Dental Lifeline Network, Maine Donated Dental Services (DDS). This is a collaborative, direct way for the dental profession to reach out to individuals with special needs. The goal is to return patients to good oral health, enabling them to reach an affordable maintenance level. We have been participating with Dental Lifeline Network since 2008.
She is into physical fitness and works out regularly. She also enjoys snowmobiling, golfing, hiking, boating, reading, decorating and knitting. Those of you who visit her office will see that she loves to take photos and her pictures are on display on the walls of the office. She has two long haired chihuahuas.
Melanie passed away unexpectedly on December 14, 2021. We have a journal at our front desk for people to share stores and their feelings about Melanie that will be presented to her parents in December of this year.
After graduating high school, she attended White Mountains Community College before transferring and receiving her Bachelor of Science degree in Dental Hygiene from the University of New England in 2018. While in college, Lori lived at Old Orchard during the school year and enjoyed walking along the beach and really loved living in Maine, and hoped one day she would end up there again. After practicing as a Dental Hygienist and commuting for the past few years in NH, Lori decided the time was right to move to Maine and is really looking forward to joining Dr. Cook and her team! Lori enjoys being outdoors, canoeing/kayaking, making crafts, painting and decorating, cooking, working out, shopping, traveling, and spending time with her friends and family as well as her families two schnauzers, Ozzie and Rex. She is excited to finally have Maine be her permanent home.
