Dr. Tanner Diggs has a deeply rooted family history in the dental arts. Born and raised in Missoula, Tanner’s father and paternal grandfather were both orthodontists in town and his maternal grandfather was a dentist in Minnesota. Knowing he wanted to follow in the family’s professional footsteps, Tanner attended the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry. It was there that he met Kate, who would become his partner in his personal and professional life. They were married one week after graduation in 2015.
Kate had a much different background from Tanner as far as dentistry goes. There were no dentists in her family, but growing up in Rochester, Minnesota—home of the Mayo Clinic—and with a large population of health care workers, Kate knew from an early age that she wanted to pursue some form of a health-related career. And she actually loved going to the dentist.
“Dentistry is great because you can really get to know your patients and their families over the course of many years of routine visits,” said Kate. “These personal connections and relationships, paired with the art and science of improving and maintaining smiles, is why I love working in dentistry.”
Kate never thought she would leave Minnesota but Tanner had his heart set on returning to Missoula. They made several visits back so Tanner could show off Missoula to Kate as a wonderful place to build their lives and careers. They returned in 2018, for good.
Transitioning to Missoula, Tanner found a position at a tribal health clinic and Kate at Family Dental Group, where she still practices today. Then the office in the Bitterroot Building came up.
“It was always a dream to own something together,” said Tanner. Since dental school, Tanner and Kate had hoped to open their own practice and this looked like the perfect opportunity. Tanner’s grandfather was one of the original owners of the building and had his orthodontic practice here with Tanner’s father joining him in his own practice in 1982. Tanner has fond memories of visiting the building as a child. Kate and Tanner purchased the space for Diggs Dental Care in September of 2020.
A full-service dental office, Diggs Dental Care offers a wide range of restorative and preventive services such as extractions, crowns, and fillings. They also offer cosmetic services, which provide Kate and Tanner a great deal of job satisfaction. These procedures may be elective but they are often life-changing.
“It’s rewarding to get someone out of pain but it’s also rewarding to transform a smile,” said Tanner.
Today, Tanner and Kate are working to continue the Diggs family legacy in Missoula with the addition of their two-year old son, Everett, and another child on the way. Their hope is that they can serve this community by providing quality dental care.
“We hear patients say, ‘I had this horrible experience when I was a kid that made me want to never come back to the dentist.’ We don’t want anyone to feel that way,” said Tanner. “We want everyone’s experience to be a good one and we work our tails off to make sure that happens.”
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Diggs Dental Care
1547 South Higgins Avenue, #103
406.543.8591
