* " I have been using Dr. Alvarez/Safari of Smiles since my 8.5 yr old was just over a year! From my first visit I was very impressed and they have not failed to live up to that first impression! I highly recommend them to everyone! I live on the northside of Jax so it is a bit of a drive but I believe it is well worth it! And its only 2x a year!

Annie- mom

* " The practice is just super. Dr. Alvarez is incredible. My girls love her, and her staff is great!!

Richmond Family

* Yesterday, my son Gavin was out of school, so we were going to have a "fun day"; Go to Toys R Us to spend birthday gift cards, go to the park, then go to the dentist.

This morning, he said "Mom, I want to go back to the dentist today - it was so fun yesterday"  Thank you for leaving a lasting impression.  The dentist was chosen as the fun for the day (over the park and Toys R Us - Wow!)

Tabitha- mom

* I really enjoyed my visit and first cleaning!  I talked about it all day and played dentist.  I will tell all my friends.

Ava - patient

* Taking a child with autism to the dentist has been a tooth-pulling experience (pun intended) in the past. Today changed that! We went to a different dentist in town who not only had experience, but also had been trained on how to treat children with special needs and so had all of her staff! MORE So—I was so impressed, that we will make the trip from Tampa back to Jacksonville to visit our DAN! doctor, Dr. Buckley, and our new dentist. Dr. Alvarez

Lynn Yeager - mom

* My husband and I were so impressed with the way our Daughter's dental work was handled and how amazing the whole staff was with Ava as well as with me & my husband. She actually loooved the experience! We were so nervous about the laughing gas and all of the procedures but with  the professional, kind, sweet natured and genuinely loving staff, it was just another day at the dentist. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I keep telling everyone to go to your office & how amazing you all are with children!!

Mrs. Pollock - mom

*My daughter told me she needed to schedule her appointment because someone came to her preschool yesterday, which reminded her she hadn't been in awhile.  I wanted to thank Dr. Alvarez for having such a wonderful office that my child wants to come to the dentist when most children are afraid of the dentist!

Mrs. Acuff - mom

* We temporarily moved here from Oklahoma two years ago, and just recently had to make the decision as to whether or not we would be moving back or staying here in Jacksonville. We ultimately made the decision to stay here. One of the primary factors, was that we did not know if it would be possible to find another dental office as excellent as Safari of Smiles. There aren't enough words to describe how awesome Dr.Alvarez is, along with her entire staff! My son is extremely shy and is quite frightened of the dentist, but the moment we enter the dental office, he is immediately put to ease by the beautiful smiles of all the members of the dental team. I have never been to a professional office, where every staff member expresses such wonderful enthusiasm for their job! The only complaint that I ever had with this office is that they don't see adults!

Kimberly Fields- mom

* THE GIRLS LOVED YOU ALL!!! Thank you SO MUCH for making the visit comfortable and easy.  They cannot wait to go again in 6 months!  I NEVER thought I would have heard that ;)  Thanks again. I have already told all of my friends about your office :)

D. Richmond - mom

* I discovered Dr. Alvarez from your radio program. I subsequently visited her with my 4 year old daughter, it was a great experience. Friday 04/28/2011 Emma fell at school and hurt her lip as I was contacted to take her to the Emergency room - she may have needed stitches . I picked her up and on my way to the Emergency room Emma told me she lost her tooth, as I was driving I decided to contact Dr. Alvarez's office for advice - Dr. Alvarez answered unknowingly to me and as I relayed the story she told me to come to her office. I made a u-turn and headed to her office. Emma was promptly seen and most importantly comforted. The interesting thing is that Dr. Alvarez office was closed and she attended to Emma anyway. The role of any Dr. should be to help when someone is hurting - this is forgotten and now determined by monetary compensation. Jesus is the greatest healer and if we are to be like him we should act like him. Dr. Alvarez only charged for an X-ray and waived the Emergency fee because Emma is a patient. I pray that God will continue to Bless her and her family, as she demonstrates her faith through her works. Thank you 88.1 for your commitment to my spiritual growth. Without you I would not have found Dr. Alvarez -

 Chindra Family

* I just wanted to take a minute to say how much we really appreciate all of you. I just got done reading an article in the HealthSource magazine (August 2011) that featured Dr. Alvarez and her practice. I count it a blessing that we found her. We had had a bad experience at another dentist in town and I really wasn’t sure what to do other than review other dentist’s in the area. Once I did my research we decided to try out Safari of Smiles. I really believe that God placed this office in my path of research because I couldn’t ask for a better experience for my children. At my daughters last visit (2^nd visit) she actually told me when we left, “I love Dr. Alvarez…she is so nice.” It melted my heart because it was with her that we had had the bad experience and she was already at the age of 4 scared of the dentist. So to be able to hear her say something like that just made my day. My husband and I were both at the last visit and I kept telling him prior to the visit how much he was going to love the people and Dr. Alvarez. When we left he was so impressed. This time was our son’s first visit and he is such a wiggle worm that we thought he was going to give Dr. Alvarez a fit but she was so calm with him and he did wiggle a little but was able to have his teeth cleaned for the first time. She was so patient with him and talked him through the entire visit. But even before she new he was there to see her we were in the waiting room and she came out to get some tooth brushes from underneath the bench and he asked for a Woody and Buzz toothbrush and completely stopped what she was doing and gave him a toothbrush and even took the time to talk and hug him. We both agreed that the distance to get there…about 45 minutes...was worth every minute driving. Thank you so much for making our children’s dental visit so comfortable and rewarding. -

Johns Family

* If you want a dentist, and office staff that truly care about your child, Dr. Alvarez is for you. We recently switched from another practice because I wanted the personalized care for cavity fillings. I was very stressed out over having t...o get my child's teeth filled. She not only put my mind at ease, but my child's as well. I couldn't have hoped for a better, lower stress outcome. The office is very kid friendly, and well decorated, and the staff is inviting. The most important thing to me is she treated my child like she would treat her own children, and did a great job on her teeth. And my daughter said she would go back. We are very thankful for Dr. Alvarez and her staff.

Palumbo Family