by Dennis Dalman
editor@thenewsleaders.com
Besides being lauded for being socially connective, Sartell Pediatrics was also honored as the only independent pediatric service in central Minnesota when it was recently named Sartell Business of the Year.
The event, the annual awards banquet of the Sartell Area Chamber of Commerce, took place April 23 at Blackberry Ridge Golf Course. The two other major honorees were Citizen of the Year Joe Schulte, who is an industrial-arts teacher at Sartell High School; and Senior Volunteer of the Year Jim Wasdyke, who is an artist and musician. (For more on Wasdyke and Schulte, see related stories.)
The other nominees this year for Business of the Year were the Bernick’s Arena Board, BLEND/CentraCare, Blue Line Sports Bar and Grill, Coborn’s, Kristen Stebbins’ State Farm Insurance Agency, PineCone Vision Center and 360 Chiropractic.
Sartell Pediatrics
In October 2012, Dr. David Smith and his wife, Jill Smith, founded Sartell Pediatrics in an award-winning retrofit of what used to be the old V-Bar on 2nd Street S. in Sartell. Jill manages the business’s operations and staff.
Since then, the service has grown dramatically and has become socially connective in a variety of partnerships and outreach programs, all of which are meant to enhance the safety and well-being of children.
Sartell Pediatrics offers a wide gamut of services for children from birth to age 21. Its staff treats the more common ailments such as strep throat, colds, flu and more complex problems such as allergies, asthma, abrasions, fractures and more. It’s also adept at treating children for behavioral issues such as depression-anxiety, grief-and-loss, anger management, drug-and-alcohol challenges, learning disabilities and parenting skills.
Among the organizations Sartell Pediatrics and its staff partner with are the American Cancer Society, Catholic Charities, the CentraCare Health Foundation, the March of Dimes, Muscular Dystrophy Association, United Cerebral Palsy of Central Minnesota, ARC Midstate, Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin and Camp We-No-Wheeze (for children suffering with respiratory problems such as asthma).
Sartell Pediatrics also supports many local programs, including the Apple Duathlon, the Pinecone Central Park Association (a $10,000 soccer-field sponsorship), the Sartell Dance Team, the Sartell Area Chamber of Commerce, the Sartell-St. Stephen Community Education Program, the Sartell Youth Hockey Association and the Sartell Speaks debate series.
One of Sartell Pediatric’s special annual programs is its partnership with Pediatric Dentistry and BLEND called Halloween Candy Buy-Back. Those places “buy back” Halloween candy that has been collected and turned in by children. The children are paid for the candy or given door prizes. The candy is then sent to troops overseas. The idea is to encourage children to forego too many sugary treats and to develop good, healthy nutrition practices.
The four main staff members at Sartell Pediatrics are Dr. David Smith, physician’s assistant Jennifer Rapatz-Harr, pediatric nurse practitioner Christine Lund and licensed psychologist Dr. Kimberly Christensen.
Smith started Sartell Pediatrics after working in pediatrics locally for seven years. Since then, the practice has grown to include two additional health-care providers and a child psychologist. In 2002, Smith graduated from Wright State Medical School in Dayton, Ohio. Then he served a residency at Nationwide Columbus Children’s Hospital in 2005. He and his wife, Jill, who have two children, have lived in Sartell for 10 years.
Rapatz-Haar joined Sartell Pediatrics in 2013 and has practiced in central Minnesota for 20 years, focusing mainly on adolescent and female medicine. She has worked as a physician’s assistant in St. Cloud as well as in Minneapolis. She is a 1981 graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and completed her pediatric training in Wisconsin. She and her husband, Steve, have lived in St. Cloud for 23 years and have three adult children.
Lund, a native Minnesotan, was thrilled while practicing her skills in Georgia to be able to move back to her home state to work at Sartell Pediatrics. As the wife of an on-the-move military man, she was able to work at a variety of hospital and clinic settings throughout the nation. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and a master’s degree in nursing from Duke University. With more than five years of pediatric clinical experience, Lund has a specialized expertise in asthma management and family nutrition.
Christensen, a licensed psychologist, has worked with children and adolescents for more than 10 years. Her work settings include residential, day-treatment, in-home, outpatient, hospital and in-school. Among her specialties are dealing with learning-disabilities testing, individual therapy, group therapy, and developing and implementing behavior programs with children and adolescents, ages 3-21. Christensen grew up in Sartell and enjoys collaborating with children and their families to promote all-around health and well-being.
