ABOUT US





Meet F. Joseph Ferrara, DDS

At Ferrara Family Dentistry, we care about you personally and will go above and beyond to ensure your comfort and confidence throughout your care. You and your family will always leave smiling.

Meet F. Joseph Ferrara, DDS


Dr. Ferrara grew up in New Orleans and moved to Mandeville in 1991 with his parents and two younger brothers. He graduated from Archbishop Rummel High School and then LSU where he met his future wife Laura and finished magna cum laude. Dr. Ferrara graduated LSU Dental School in 2003, finishing with honors including entry into the C. Edmund Kells Honor Society and was awarded the General Dentistry Award. He has worked as a dentist on the Northshore since graduation and has been a resident of Madisonville since 2004. His wife, a veterinarian, works down the road at Tchefuncte Animal Hospital. They have two young children, Becca and Noah. Dr. Ferrara is happy to work in the town where he is raising his family and loves the atmosphere of Madisonville. The driving force behind his chosen career is the need to help others as well as the desire to work and create in fine detail with his hands. Personal connections with his patients are a priority to Dr. Ferrara. His special interests in dentistry include sedation dentistry, implants, orthodontics, and cosmetic dentistry.

He has been an active member in local dental organizations, serving as the Treasurer for the local component of the American Dental Association for the past few years and was recently selected by his peers to serve as President in the next term. He is an active member at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church, and his hobbies include family, entertaining friends, movies, LSU & Saints football, and outdoor activities. Since childhood, he has been an avid Star Wars fan.

Dr. Firmin, DDS

Meet Dr. Todd Firmin, DDS


Dr. Firmin was born and raised in Baton Rouge. He attended Catholic High School where he was a member of the basketball and football team as well as elected Senior class Vice President. Following high school, Dr. Firmin attended LSU where he received his undergraduate degree in biology with a minor in business. During his time at LSU, Dr. Firmin worked at Sherman and Balhoff Orthodontics, Dr. Levy and Vutera Family Dentistry, and was a member of Lambda Chi Fraternity. After completing his undergraduate studies, he enrolled in Mississippi College where he obtained a master's of medical sciences degree. After the completion of his master's degree, Dr. Firmin enrolled in LSU School of Dentistry where he graduated in 2021. Following graduation, Dr. Firmin married his longtime girlfriend, Rebecca, in City Park which was a favorite spot of theirs during their time in New Orleans. After graduation, they moved to the Northshore where they saw a future to start a career and family. Dr. Firmin and Rebecca have since welcomed their first child, Olivia, in September 2022.

Dr. Firmin began a passion for dentistry following his corrective jaw surgery during his time at LSU. After the positive impact the procedure had on him, he strived to become someone who can help others have a similar experience. It is his goal to help each patient have the healthy confident smile that they deserve. Dr. Firmin is an active member of the Northshore Dental Association. His family are members of St. Peter's Catholic Church in Covington. He enjoys spending time with his family, golfing, and supporting all LSU and New Orleans sports.



kelly heck

Kelly - Registered Dental Hygienist


Kelly was born in New Orleans and moved to the Northshore in 1993. She graduated from Covington High School and went on to receive a degree in Psychology from Southeastern University. After graduating from Southeastern she decided to pursue a career in Dental Hygiene. In 2004 she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Dental Hygiene from LSU School of Dentistry. She has now been practicing for almost 16 years and resides in Bush with her husband Josh and two children. Kelly enjoys hiking and spending time with her family. Kelly loves interacting with her patients and making sure they have a very comfortable and positive experience.

Paulette Dolese

Paulette - Registered Dental Hygienist


Paulette has been in the dental field for over 25 years and became a Dental Hygienist in 2000. She graduated in the top of her class from University of Louisiana at Monroe. Paulette is quick to make patients feel at ease by building confidence, trust and friendships with each patient she encounters. Her interests are in health and wellness, and she is extremely devoted to educating patients on their individual wants and needs. For the past ten years she has resided in Mandeville with her husband of 22 years and has been a devoted mother to their three sones. When not working, she enjoys watching her boys swim, competitively, boating on the Tchefunte and traveling.

Sarah

Sarah - Registered Dental Hygienist


Sarah was born and raised in Mandeville, Louisiana and graduated from Fontainebleau High School in 2012. Surprisingly, dentistry was not on her radar growing up with her two sisters and brother. Instead, she dreamt of being a zookeeper. After starting her degree at LSU Baton Rouge, Sarah made this dream a reality when she began working at Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans in February of 2013. She cared for animals such as gorillas, tigers, and elephants for several years, but unexpectedly, a new passion of dentistry arose in an unconditional way -observing a root canal on a bear in the Audubon animal hospital. Her newfound interest of the dental field grew rapidly from there and she soon launched her journey to becoming a Registered Dental Hygienist. Sarah is proud to have earned her Bachelor's of Dental Hygiene with honors from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in May 2023 and is thrilled to take care of all your oral hygiene needs at Ferrara Family Dentistry. Like Dr. Ferrara, she also has a goldendoodle at home so don't be shy to ask for a visit with Chewie or Obi at your next visitl

NOT A NUMBER — A NEIGHBOR!

You’ll never be treated like a number here. We get to know you personally to ensure you receive quality dentistry that best fits your needs. It’s what any good neighbor would do!

We treat you as a person.

We don’t believe in one-size-fits-all. Everyone is different and your dental needs are unique to you. Rather than pushing you through with cookie-cutter treatments like some dentists do, we get to know you personally so we can customize your dental care to meet your individual needs. You’re not a number – you’re a neighbor.

Inside our doors you'll feel at ease.

One key to a great dental experience is being able to relax and feel at home. We’ve created that kind of environment here. With blankets to keep you cozy, noise-canceling headphones to improve comfort, sedation options to ease anxious nerves and a well-trained team with an excellent chairside manner, we’re pretty confident your visit will be smooth and relaxing.

Our team is caring and compassionate.

We can’t stress enough how much we want you to know that we truly care about you. Sure, we may not know you yet, but we hope to build a relationship with you that lasts through the years. Our friendly team will treat you with genuine compassion and respect — just give us a chance! Your health and happiness are important to us.

You will be educated and informed.

Our goal isn’t just to fix your dental problems, it’s to help you avoid them in the first place! And we do that through detailed patient education. We will teach you proper at-home preventive measures and set a plan for routine dental checkups. We want to be your dentist for life, but we also want you to enjoy lasting oral health for life!

We keep up with emerging dental technology.

Dental technology is constantly changing and we’re changing right along with it! Keeping up with the most modern technology allows us to improve accuracy, speed, safety, comfort and quality. We are constantly researching emerging technology and will always invest in anything that will help us better serve you.

Your community is our community.

Chances are you’ve seen us around! That’s because we love this wonderful community we live in and and we try to be as involved as possible by giving back through our time, treasure and talents. Running into our patients at community events is a joy for us, so we hope to bump into you between your dental visits!



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