Dr. Suzan Furney opened Today’s Smile in New Braunfels 37 years ago. Now she shares her passion and business with her daughter, Dr. Sarah McCutchen.

According to the American Dental Association, 31 percent of today’s dentists are women—a much higher number than were practicing in 1981 when the business opened. Today, the mother-daughter duo operates Today’s Smile with an all-female staff.

“The number of patients we see daily varies a lot,” McCutchen said, adding that it depends on what staff is available. “Today it’s two hygienists and myself, so we’ll probably see about 25 patients.”

Despite a busy schedule, McCutchen said the staff knows most patients by name. Some patients have been visiting the practice long enough to remember when McCutchen was a baby herself. Having grown up doing small jobs like sweeping the office or working at the front desk, McCutchen was already comfortable in the dental office when she decided to switch majors in college.

“I was a business major at Texas A&M when I realized I loved science classes,” McCutchen said about her decision to become a dentist. “And I had a built-in mentor with my mom.”

Today’s Smile moved to its current location on Common Street in 2000, when McCutchen said it was surrounded by grass fields instead of the busy roads and businesses in the area now. McCutchen joined the practice a decade later in 2010.

Today, McCutchen is helping keep the dental center up-to-date with new technology like CEREC, a digital tool that creates precise crowns in a single visit so patients do not have to make repeat appointments or wear temporary crowns.

A wide range of services are available at the dental office, and the most common include fillings, surgical implants, root canals, dentures and orthodontics.

“We know a lot of people don’t enjoy visiting the dentist, so we try to make them as comfortable as possible,” McCutchen said. “I try to explain everything, take my time and listen to the patient. I look at the whole body, not just the mouth.”