Fall 2005 - UNC School of Dentistry - The University of North ...

Why I GiveJeremy Fry, DDS ’03, and hiswife Nicki, have a lot of logicalreasons to put off a major givingrelationship with the School, atleast for a few years.For one, they live clear acrossthe country in Manhattan Beach,California. Not to mention thatJeremy is still in school; an orthodonticsresident at the Universityof Southern California. He andNicki, an orthopedic surgerynurse at Torrance MemorialMedical Center, have a busytoddler, Caroline, and all the joysand responsibilities of youngworking parents.But for the Frys, all those logicalreasons have only sharpenedtheir desire to be stewards for theirbeloved blue and white school onthe opposite coast.Jeremy and Nicki caught thegiving bug before they crossed thegraduation stage. Together, theyhad the opportunity to take theirschool rotations overseas inCambodia. The experience ofbringing the health care manyAmericans take for granted to aJEREMY FRYThe Frys want to provide a “worldlyexperience”... knowing that whenstudents are in school, they often don’thave the time or financial means forglobal experience and service.By Courtney Jones, UNC ’01less-fortunate community waslife-altering.“When we were in Cambodia,we felt so lucky and we thought‘How can I do something for thesepeople in my little way?’ You couldjust give money, or donate dentalsupplies, but the best way is tofacilitate other young people to getthere to help.” They immediatelybegan brainstorming to see howthey could make that happen.In February 2005, the familybrought their plans to realitywhen they made the first steps toestablish and endow the FryFamily Rotation Award. Theaward will be used to help a thirdyearDDS student travel to providedental care, education, andservice in a country other than theUnited States. The Frys want toprovide a “worldly experience” asone of the student’s rotations,knowing that when students are inschool, they often don’t have thetime or financial means for globalexperience and service.“If you don’t have a lot ofmoney, you can still be good stewards,”Jeremy said. “You can givelittle by little now, build anendowment, and give more later,when you can.”The trip to Cambodia didmore than instill a sense of dutyin the couple. It also sparked theirwanderlust, leading them out toCalifornia for Jeremy’s residency.Upon graduation, Jeremy plans toreturn to Kansas to join hisfather’s orthodontics practice andwanted to experience more of thecountry before the family settledthere. His father is orthodontistRobert Fry, MS ’77, who he creditswith giving him a good foundationfor stewardship and giving,and a great love for UNC.“A lot of students carry withthem a burden of debt and aretrying to start their own practices.The last thing they can thinkabout is giving money away.My parents gave when theydidn’t have much. It was a greatexample.” ■Jeremy and Nicki Fry with daughter Caroline.26