Dripping is for Business: Whisenant Drills

With the name Whisenant, one could say that drilling is in his blood. D r. Shane Whisenant may be drilling teeth today, but he gr ew up with much larger drills, drilling water w ells in the fam - ily business of Raymond O. Whisenant & Son.

“Growing up, helping in the family business, there was a time I was putting in 12 to 13 hour days drilling water w ells in all sor ts of w eather. Tha convinced me that someday I might want an indoor job ,” Whisenant said while smiling.

Dr. Shane Whisenant (please call me Shane) is pretty down to earth. He jokes about the well driller’s term “ drill to the right,” and how he’s a third generation driller and it’s still “drill to the right. (A term used in the field y professional drillers because a drill bit turns to the right.)

His dentistry business, Gatlin Creek Dentistry, is named for the small br ook he gr ew up near, south of Ranch Road 12; and it was a finalist for this year’s Up & Coming Business Chamber Award.

Growing up in Dripping, he knew the city when it was a much smaller town, just a few miles from that sleepy town of Austin. His family has deep roots here. The Whisenants have been in H ays County since 1878, and wor k ethic and community means a lot. Also, if you’re thinking the name rings a bell, that ’s probably because his father , Ray Whisenant, is D ripping Springs’ Precinct 4 Commis - sioner.

”My parents made sur e we were working on S aturdays if we were not in athletics, ” Shane said. “Growing up here you learn a r esponsibility to give back to the communi - ty… Like fixing f ozen pumps on Christmas Eve.”

Graduating from Dripping Springs High School, he was a Middle Linebacker and a captain of the squad, also playing baseball and track. H is wife Janey was captain of the High Steppers.

Next for Shane it was on to Texas A & M and both B.S. and M.S. degrees in Wildlife Ecology. He and his peers were into hunting and fishin which seemed like a nice fit plus you could get paid while going to school. That seale the deal.

“Seven years later I had my Masters and B achelors,” he said. “I got a job with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Florida Keys, Big Pine Key to be exact. ” Life was going well, he was adv ancing in his job but something kept both - ering him.

“From an early age I was interested in, y es dentistry. I always had good check-ups. Teeth are amazing in what they do for us, ” Shane said, citing Hermie the D entist from “Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer” as a good infl - ence. (In fact he has a Hermie Christmas ornament).

He thought that he might always regret it if he didn’t go back to school and at least try. He spent years retaking science courses because dental schools do not look at anything except A’s. Finally he graduated from Baylor College of D entistry and he is glad he made the decisions that he had.

He’s been in business for 17 months and is glad to be home. He, Janey and their two boys live in the area where they grew up. He realizes the fear that most people have of a dentist, for many it is the fear of the unknown and the fear of pain.

“I get your apprehension… (but) it’s paramount that myself and the patient wor k together as partners. They eceive as much information I can provide so that they can make a good decision them - selves.”

His dental facilities are spotless and have the latest in technology with the internal offi atmosphere overlooks the hills and valleys of S awyer Ranch Road, something else to help a patient relax.

“I’m never in a hurry. I want a patient to stop me at any point to ask questions. Working with the patient I want them to kno w how close the provider and patient hav e to work together. That is e - tremely important to me… being comfortable is the number one priority.”

Gatlin Creek Dentistry 13830 Sawyer Ranch rd suite 201 Dripping Springs, TX 78620

(512) 522-3858 Website: gatlincreekdentistry.com