Current Board Members
The F. B. Vedder Society Board of Directors
Our History
Francis B. Vedder Society of Crown and Bridge Prosthodontics
In June 1959, Dr. Leon Segat of the Crown and Bridge department at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry spearheaded the efforts at establishing a study club devoted to the advancement of the art and science of crown and bridge prosthodontics. Preliminary discussions were held during the summer of 1959. A constitution and by-laws were adopted, and plans were made to initiate members and hold meetings. The first officers elected were Dr. Fred Schelkun, president; Dr. Ron Fox, president-elect; Dr. Robert Benetau, secretary; and Dr. Ron Heath, treasurer.
Dr. Francis B. Vedder, who had recently retired as chairman of Crown and Bridge from the dental school, consented to the use of his name for the society and spoke at the inaugural meeting of the society in November 1959 at the Michigan League. At this meeting Dr. Philip Jay and Dr. Dean Millard presented the first scientific program to the society.
During his remarks at this inaugural meeting, Dr. Vedder expressed great concern for the numbers of teeth lost at that time and hoped the society would devote itself to the study of the prevention of conditions that necessitate full mouth rehabilitations. He related how when he entered dentistry, crown and bridge prosthodontics was a rather crude science, and how many of the early practitioners struggled through many failures to achieve the results possible in the late nineteen fifties. At the time he spoke, the air turbine handpiece and elastic impression materials were still quite new on the scene. Cautioning that we had by no means reached the zenith of development, he envisioned tremendous progress ahead for all areas of dentistry.
Dr. Vedder also suggested occasionally looking back over the past. Especially in dentistry, which has evolved as an art and a science, he felt this was important to avoid past mistakes. He was also concerned about losing the respect the profession had gained from the public, and felt we should avoid “gimmicks” but strive toward progress in rendering more and better services. He said, “I think an organization of this kind can make a valuable contribution to the profession by the practical evaluation of many of those things that are presented to the profession as new ideas, new methods, and new materials. Too many of our profession are prone to adopt and use these things without evaluating their effects, occasionally to the injury of their patients and to the detriment of their practice.” His comments are still apropos of today’s changing dental profession.
The Vedder Society began in circumstances similar to the Bunting Society and the Kingery Study Club and paralleled those clubs in Michigan. A unique feature of the Vedder Society has been the initiation of laboratory technicians as members, reflecting the importance of technicians in the delivery of crown and bridge services. The society grew rapidly and now has approximately 270 members.
From its inception, the Vedder Society has held two meetings per year. A one-day meeting is held in southeast Michigan in March, and a three-day meeting is held in the fall, usually in northern Michigan.
Distinguished Speakers
The list of speakers who have presented programs before the Vedder Society includes many of the great names in restorative dentistry during the past sixty years: Avery Bartlett, Homer Faust, Jerome Schweitzer, George Myers, Miles Markley, Ralph Philips, Henry Tanner, Stanley Tylman, Rex Ingram, Everett Payne, Victor Lucia, Harry Lundeen, R. Sheldon Stein, Max Kornfeld, Charles Stuart, Niles Guichet, Cliff Fox, Gordon Christiansen, Jack Preston, Lloyd Miller, John Flocken, Ralph Youdelis, George Zarb, Masahiro Kuwata, Terry Tanaka, Terry Donovan, Robert Winter, David Garber, Joe Clayton, Dan Sullivan, Al Filastre, John Kanka, Jeff Okeson, Denis Tarnow, William Strupp, Gerard Chiche, Frank Spear, John Kois, and Bernard Touati.
Graduate prosthodontic students from The University of Detroit Mercy and The University of Michigan are invited to the spring meeting as guests, as are the top five undergraduate students from each school. In addition, a cash award is given annually to the undergraduate F. B. Vedder Award winners from each school.
In 2019, the F. B. Vedder Society celebrated its sixtieth anniversary, continuing its tradition of promoting excellence in crown and bridge prosthodontics. Practitioners wishing to learn more about the society or to register to attend either the spring or fall meeting can visit www.veddersociety.com.
Past Presidents of the F. B. Vedder Society
1959 – Dr. Fred Schelkun 1960 – Dr. William F. Bender 1961 – Dr. Ronald Heath 1962 – Dr. Horace M. Oren 1963 – Dr. Richard W. Huffman 1964 – Dr. Robert T. Sena 1965 – Dr. Jack W. Bates 1966 – Dr. R. David Allen 1967 – Dr. Murray A. Clark 1968 – Dr. Hugh Cooper, Jr. 1969 – Dr. Ralph Moore 1970 – Dr. Irving Nedelman 1971 – Dr. Paul Nelson 1972 – Dr. Francis J. Maly 1973 – Dr. Ronald P. Shaffer 1974 – Dr. Eldon Bailey 1975 – Dr. Ralph T. Zade 1976 – Dr. Darl E. Pochert 1977 – Dr. Francis P. Blake 1978 – Dr. E. Richard McPhee 1979 – Dr. J. Russell Anderson, Jr. 1980 – Dr. Arnold Baker 1981 – Dr. William E. Avery 1982 – Dr. Gary Sasaki 1983 – Dr. David F. Cooley 1984 – Dr. James I. Avery 1985 – Dr. Larry Stone 1986 – Dr. Lennart H. Lofstrom 1987 – Dr. Ronald I. Tuck 1988 – Dr. Charles C. Beard 1989 – Dr. Peter Chiaravalli 1990 – Dr. Roger A. Mead 1991 – Dr. Gary W. Johnson 1992 – Dr. Kirk Donaldson 1993 – Dr. Gary Hubbard 1994 – Dr. Robert W. Lenhard 1995 – Dr. Gary Arnold 1996 – Dr. Joseph Carlu 1997 – Dr. John L. Carter 1998 – Dr. Josef N. Kolling 1999 – Dr. Edward Borio 2000 – Dr. Michael Davis II 2001 – Dr. Kevin Sloan 2002 – Dr. Robert Lieder 2003 – Dr. Jon McLain 2004 – Dr. Ralph G. Silvey 2005 – Dr. Howard A. Hammerink 2006 – Dr. Michael Kress 2007 – Dr. Gregg Resnick 2008 – Dr. Marvin Sonne 2009 – Dr. Bradford Rowe 2010 – Dr. Harriett McGraw 2011 – Dr. Harriett McGraw 2012 – Dr. Wayne Walcot 2013 – Dr. Cheri Newman 2014 – Dr. Doug Henke 2015 – Dr. Angelo Zervous 2016 – Dr. Viviana Vagalu 2017 – Dr. Michel Nasif 2018 – Dr. Roman Shlafer 2019 – Kathee Pascoe, CDT 2020 – Kathee Pascoe, CDT 2021 – Kathee Pascoe, CDT 2022 – Dr. Chris Chrysler 2023 – Dr. Chris Chrysler 2024 – Dr. Marvin Sonne
Vedder Society Award
The Francis B. Vedder Society annually offers a $500 award and certificate to the top senior student in Crown and Bridge. The Society was founded in honor of Dr. Francis B. Vedder, who was a University of Michigan faculty member for forty years and the chairman of the Crown and Bridge Department at the time of his retirement in 1961.
The award winner is determined by a committee of faculty members who impartially review the materials submitted by each candidate. Each restorative dentistry instructor may nominate their best student in crown and bridge. If you have had a good crown and bridge experience, done with your independent effort, are willing to put in the time needed to present your case, and your supervising instructor is willing to nominate you, then please consider competing for this award.
Your instructor may advise you in the production of your best case presentation. You must present one case (3 or more units of C&B done simultaneously). If you have more than one case of suitable quality, you may present the working casts with dies of these cases as additional supporting documentation of your skills.
WINNERS
The intent is to select one winner. The top five finalists will be invited to, and acknowledged at, the Spring meeting of the Society, usually held in Lansing, Michigan.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, please contact Dr. Josef Kolling (jkolling@umich.edu) or Dr. Howard A. Hamerink (hahdds@umich.edu).
The F. B. Vedder Society Constitution & Bylaws
Curious about The Frances B. Vedder Society's mission, structure, and purpose?
Our organization's constitution and operations manual dictate the form and function of what we do. Click below to view and download the Constitution, Bylaws, and Operations Manual.
Article II: Objective
The objective shall be to promote and encourage advancement of sound restorative principles in the practice and crown and bridge prosthodontics; to stimulate, be informed of and to advance the latest developments, theories, techniques, and research in crown and bridge; to exchange ideas and promote coordination with all allied both clinical and technical areas of dentistry.