The Enclavers
Roger and JoAnn Triftshauser
Roger was born in Warsaw, New York, on August 13, 1937, and grew up living with his family on his grandparents’ farm near Alexander, New York. He worked on the farm
with his parents, learning from them the value of hard work and helping others.
During the summers of his high school years, he played trumpet and bass drum
in the Alexander Fireman’s Band, and that’s where he met JoAnn Novak who also
played in the band. They say that their romance started on a musical note.
JoAnn was born in Plattsburgh, New York, on May 27, 1939. Her father’s mother came from Czechoslovakia, and the family settled in Elmira, New York, where there was a large Czech community. JoAnn remembers looking down from her aunt’s window
as a child and watching the dancing at the big community parties. JoAnn’s father worked for the state correctional system in Dannemora and then Attica, where she
and her two older brothers grew up and went to school. Music was a big part of
their family life, and JoAnn enjoyed singing and playing the trombone. In high
school, she sang in the chorus as well as an a cappella group called The Five Notes.
She was a class officer and cheerleader, played basketball, and worked part-time
in an ice cream store. After graduating, she attended Erie County Community
College in Buffalo and successfully completed the dental hygiene program.
After high school, Roger attended the University of Buffalo where friends introduced him to the idea of a career in dentistry. He decided to enroll in the University of Buffalo School of Dentistry. He and JoAnn were married on August 22, 1959, and JoAnn worked as a dental hygienist while Roger completed dental school. After he graduated in 1961, he began six years of active duty in the Navy Dental Corps, which took them to Chelsea Naval Hospital in Boston, the Naval Station on Midway Island, Naval Air Station Point Mugu in Oxnard, California, and the USS Dixie in San Diego. They had many exciting adventures and welcomed three daughters into their family along the way—Gretchen, Kristen, and Erin. Roger completed active duty in 1967 and then received a master’s degree in orthodontics from Loma Linda School of Dentistry in California and joined the Naval Reserve Dental Corps. He and JoAnn loved California and planned to settle there, but after a visit back to their home town of Batavia, New York, they decided the area needed an orthodontist and their family needed them to be closer. So, they
moved back to New York, where their son Erik was born and where Roger
established his orthodontics practice which he maintained for over forty years.
Roger calls JoAnn a “5-Star Mom” because of the way she supported him and enabled their family pursuits while being away from loved ones and on her own with their small children for months at a time. While Roger focused on dental school, his Navy career, and establishing his dental practice, JoAnn was busy nurturing their four children.
She served on PTAs and managed the frenzy of the children’s activities in academics, sports, and music. JoAnn also sang in the church choir and regularly prepared afternoon meals for as many as 120 young people at the First Presbyterian Church
in Batavia. She organized all their family vacations including winter ski trips to the
Von Trapp Guest Houses in Stowe, Vermont, summer retreats on Silver Lake in Perry, New York, and spring breaks in Sanibel. They especially loved coming to Sanibel because it reminded them of Midway Island, where they had been stationed while
on active duty. From 1977 to 1985, the Triftshausers opened their home to a series
of seven Rotary International exchange students from Australia, Finland, Sweden,
and Brazil. JoAnn insisted that they be assigned students who could stay with
them for an entire year so that the students would become more connected
with their family. During that time, two of their own daughters studied in Brazil
and Sweden as Rotary exchange students. JoAnn’s nurturing continued as their
children went through high school, college and beyond. She orchestrated all their weddings and was present at the births of each of their eleven grandchildren.
Roger spent twenty-seven years in the Naval Reserve Dental Corps, and in 1990 his ever-increasing command duties resulted in his selection as Rear Admiral in the Naval Reserve Dental Corps. He was in a hospital birthing room holding his first grandchild when the chief of the Dental Corps phoned to give him the news. Over the next few years, Roger would travel to naval bases in Japan, Guam, Okinawa, Pearl Harbor, Italy,
and England. He feels honored to have had the opportunity to serve his country for thirty-three years. He retired from the Naval Reserve Dental Corps in 1995, and it
was on that occasion that the Chief of Naval Operations wrote to JoAnn:
“You have been the tower of strength that has kept Roger’s spirits
high and his desire to serve young men and women in our
Navy in high gear. You have been more than part of his rise to become
Deputy Assistant Chief of Dentistry, Bureau of Medicine and
Dentistry. It would not have happened without you.”
Roger learned the importance of giving back to the community from his parents, and over the past six decades he has given leadership to countless boards, associations, and committees of dental and local government organizations such as the New York State and American Dental Associations, American College of Dentists, Batavia Board
of Education, YMCA, Boy Scouts, Genesee County legislature, and Rotary International. In addition, he helped develop a course in ethics that the University of Buffalo’s
School of Dental Medicine implemented into their freshman curriculum. Together
he and JoAnn have coordinated fourteen cruises for members of the American
College of Dentists and still continue to organize their dental class five-year reunions.
The Triftshausers spent a lot of time in Sanibel after their children grew up and left home. While Roger was still working and traveling back and forth between Batavia
and Sanibel, JoAnn would stay for extended periods in Sanibel. The owner of Chico’s convinced her to come to work there assisting customers and modeling their
clothing at Traders Restaurant. When Roger retired and sold his dental practice,
he and JoAnn moved permanently to Sanibel, where they continued their work
with the Rotary Club. JoAnn has been involved with the Annual Sanibel/Captiva
Rotary Club Arts & Crafts Festival and Roger, who has completed fifty-three
years with Rotary, has chaired their Silent Auction since 2014. As a result of her dedication to service, especially related to their seven exchange students,
JoAnn was named a Paul Harris Fellow in 2022 by the Rotary Foundation
“in appreciation of tangible and significant assistance given for the furtherance
of better understanding and friendly relations among peoples of the world.”
In 2020, Roger convinced JoAnn to sell their home in Sanibel and move to
Shell Point. They first lived in Rosemont while awaiting the completion of their
Enclave home, which they moved into on October 30, 2020. They are still busy volunteering but take time to enjoy concerts at the Tribby. Roger continues to document their life journey in several biographical poetic volumes which reflect the things that have been important to him and JoAnn throughout their lives—family
first, excellence and ethics in their work, and a passion for community service.
This excerpt describes how they feel about life at Shell Point.
​​
No more home repairs or landscaping.
Enriching cultural, life-long learning, sports play,
A caring staff, ‘ease of living’, endless healthcare,
A ‘gift’ to our kids, for the REST of our WAY.
The following is a link to an article about Roger from the May 2022 Shell Point Life Magazine. It includes more
details about Roger’s life and career as well as lots of interesting pictures of the Triftshauser family.
