Community & Business
19 December, 2025
School dentist hangs up her scrubs
SCHOOL dental therapist Lynette Mirarchi has hung up her scrubs once and for all after spending 40 years becoming well-acquainted with the mouths of countless locals.
Mrs Mirarchi has become well-known in the community through her four decades of work as a dental therapist at Mareeba State School, with her very first patients now being parents, and in some cases, grandparents.
She recently announced her retirement and was specially recognised at school parade, where her colleagues, school staff and children bid their farewells to her.
“It’s humbling. I got very spoilt on my last day, which was nice,” Mrs Mirarchi said.
“I’ve been here a long time, I’ve seen generations. I’ve treated kids back in the day and now I’ve treated their kids or their kid’s kids – it’s three generations, some of them.
“I’ve had a lot of hugs from patients, so it’s really humbling. I feel appreciated, especially for the profession that it is – nobody loves going to the dentist.”
She said she loved her job, especially the people she worked with and the many kids that brought her joy.
“I loved the colleagues I worked with, we were a work family, and we still are. We’ve all worked together for a long time,” she said.
“I loved making a difference. Treating the hard cases and then getting them to comply. I loved the special needs kids, I have an affinity to those little ones.
“And just trying to make their first dental experience positive. That’s a lot of it – making it fun. Taking out teeth isn’t very fun and so you’re just the big meanie. But if you can make it fun for them when they’re young, it will help them as they get older.”
Mrs Mirarchi’s journey as a dental therapist began in 1986 when she graduated from the Townsville Dental Therapy Training Centre as part of its final cohort. Fresh out of training and leaving her family behind, she was posted to the Tablelands District Oral Health Service – an adventure that would shape the rest of her life.
Her early years were spent criss-crossing the Tablelands in the school dental vans, visiting schools in Mount Garnet, Ravenshoe, Dimbulah, Julatten, and everywhere in between.
Those long days on the road treating children in small communities taught her resilience, compassion, and the importance of building trust with not only the children she treated but with the parents and carers.
She then settled into the Mareeba School Dental Clinic within the Mareeba State School grounds in 1988 – a place that quickly became a lifelong commitment, and Mareeba slowly became home in every sense of the word.
She soon married into farm life, raised three children, and became part of the heartbeat of the local community.
Ms Mirarchi said she was excited for her retirement.
“Yes, I am looking forward to retirement. I have grandkids that I will look after. We also have a farm. And just doing a few things that I haven’t had time to do,” the now 60-year-old said.
