Dr. Melodee Armfield Begins Role as 141st KDA President
About Dr. Melodee Armfield
Butler County, KS has always been home to Melodee. She is the oldest child of Vera and Raymond Brice. She is a 1977 graduate of El Dorado High School. Upon graduation, she attended Butler County Community College for one year, then transferred to Wichita State University. Melodee graduated summa cum laude in 1980 from WSU with a BS in Medical Technology. Melodee worked in microbiology at in Wichita and later at Bethany Medical Center in Kansas City.
While attending WSU, Melodee met her future husband, Mark Armfield, in an organic chemistry class. Mark was a chemistry major who was planning to go to dental school. They were married in December of 1980 and Mark started dental school in 1982. After exploring the possibility of getting a doctoral degree in microbiology, Melodee decided to follow Mark in dentistry and started UMKC in 1983. After graduation in 1987, the Armfield’s purchased the dental practice of Dr. Tom Day in Augusta.
While a student at UMKC, Melodee served as President of the UMKC Association of Women Dental Students and President of Xi Psi Phi Dental Fraternity. She was also the catcher for the co-ed intramural softball team (don’t laugh, we were the intramural champs!).
Long time friend and mentor, Dr. Joseph Musser, first introduced Melodee to organized dentistry while she was a dental student. Joe would always call and arrange to meet the Armfields at the dental meeting. He is dearly missed by the Armfields.
Melodee has served several times as President and Vice President of the Seventh District Dental Society, and for many years as a delegate to the KDA Board of Delegates. She has served on the Budget and Finance Committee and is currently Chair of the KDA Membership Committee. She helps coordinate Lunch and Learns, the Real World Transition Brunch, and other KDA activities for dental students. She has attended the ADA Membership Recruitment and Retention Conference numerous times.
Melodee is also a member of the American College of Dentists, International College of Dentistry, and the Academy of General Dentistry. She serves on the dental advisory board for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas. Melodee loves the practice of dentistry and working with others to improve her profession.
Melodee and Mark are the proud parents of two children, Natalee and Collin. The Armfields have been a host family to three exchange students: Steffen Wenz and Konrad Giesler of Germany, and Sasha Poshlykova of Russia. The Armfield family loves to share their home with these students for a year, and feels it helps them have a more global understanding of their world. It has also allowed them to travel and have many very meaningful relationships with the students and their families.
Melodee is a member of the Augusta United Methodist Church where she has served on many committees and sings in the Chancel Choir. She is a member of PEO chapter AF and the Augusta Optimist. Melodee is Vice President of her book club and her investment club.
