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Dr. Pierre Marois
At last year’s PFA Board Meeting, our longest-serving International Trustee tendered his resignation. Pierre Albert Jacques Marois of Paris, France, had represented the European (and some North African) PFA Sections on the International PFA Board since his 1983 appointment by then PFA President General Robert Shira, a long-time friend. Pierre had become a Fellow in 1954 and began contributing by building the PFA Section in France. As Trustee for Europe, Dr. Marois added to and strengthened the Academy in that area. Those activities alone might have given him quite a prominence in the annals of the Academy. But Dr. Marois was a person of even greater dimension.
“I gladly accepted the challenge Dr. Shira had given me. I had to build Europe from scratch, but I enjoyed every minute of it,” Dr. Marois stated at his PFA retirement dinner last October. “To be a Trustee for 20 years was a constant pleasure. It gave me the opportunity to meet fascinating people, ambitious people, devoted people and all kinds of characters.” Many times, Dr. Marois passed the opportunity of being elected PFA’s International President stating that “being the European Trustee was a constant pleasure” he did not want to give up.
L-R, Secretary General Richard Kozal, Trustee Pierre Marois, and Trustees Charles Eller, Bob Hart, and Richard Walsh at a PFA Board Meeting
In one’s life, a person is fortunate indeed to meet about a half dozen special individuals who are recognized not only for the use of their abilities and talents, but the quality with which they reach out and touch everyone around them. Pierre Marois is just such a man. When one examines the eight-decade span of his life, the reader is impressed. But when each of us has been touched by this outstanding person, we discover the true inner meaning of the term, “A Man for All Ages.” That phrase has been used so often, but in each case with true meaning. Your editor has known this professional man and his equally brilliant, and very understanding, wife, Seba, for some 15 years.
None of us knew Dr. Marois’ fellow countryman Pierre Fauchard, except by reputation. So to us, professional dentistry, French concern for our profession, and outstanding leadership are all embodied in our Pierre—Dr. Marois. To us, France is Pierre Marois. To PFA, Pierre Fauchard is our namesake.
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But Pierre Marois is who made PFA an outstanding professional European honor service organization. Pierre Fauchard established dentistry as a modern profession. Pierre Marois established dentistry as a leading confederation of Section Fellows who perform over and above their regular dental schedules by going out to the indigent and dentally handicapped. This contribution of our Academy goes beyond the scope Fauchard’s dreams.
Pierre Marois is who he seems to be—an intelligent, thoughtful person, humble in his self assurance of what he has accomplished, while at the same time encompassing compassion and love for all those that he touches and continues to help along life’s pathway. Pierre is on a first name basis with organized dentistry’s world Leaders, yet he is never too busy to interrupt his work to help a student.
Never one to brag, or to embellish bigger-than-life stories, a writer attempting to chronicle his life must dig out the sensational events that course through this remarkable man’s existence. They are not extracted easily through his aura of humility. The stories of some of his life’s non-dental episodes during the tumultuous times of the last century he will not relate for fear of offending someone.
Pierre did not want them to be any type of hallmark in his life’s record. He did not want them to be a part of distracting from his dedication to his profession. He chose to be a dental professional. The other activities chose him to be a part of their history. Those stories he wishes to be buried, but it is sufficient to say that he has probably seen as much combat action as General Shira.
Pierre was born in Algers, Algeria (then a French possession across the Mediterranean in North Africa). His father, Dr. Ernest Marois, was a physician. Pierre finished high school in Lyon, France, just as World War II began to engulf the continents, one country at a time. Pierre served his country well. However, like many citizen warriors across the world of that time, his modesty and memory refuse to relive those horrors.
By 1948, Pierre had earned his dental degree from Paris Medical University. His scholarship and leadership abilities were well recognized and he was named to a Fulbright Scholarship in 1950. Pierre then left his homeland to sail from Le Havre to New York City; from there, he went to Chicago to earn another dental degree from Chicago’s Northwestern University School of Dentistry in 1951. Loyola University of Chicago shared in shaping his abilities when Dr. Marois did postgraduate work there at the Chicago College of Dental Surgery.
Trustee Pierre Marois giving a presentation at the Chicago Leadership Conference
Upon returning to France, the young Dr. Marois opened his dental practice in Paris while accepting a teaching position at the Dental School of Paris. There he was quickly promoted through the ranks to a full professorship in Operative Dentistry by 1961, a position he would hold for the next decade.
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In March of 1954, Dr. Marois joined the prestigious staff of the American Hospital of Paris. In his story, he was able to move up the list of waiting dental surgeons to join the staff by taking the weekend dental shifts. This was a special time in Pierre’s career. His dental emergency skills were tested on many famous actors (such as Burt Lancaster), actresses (such as Ingrid Bergman and Liz Taylor), author of “From Here to Eternity” James Jones, songwriter Frankie Laine, and diplomats, including the King of Morocco, the royal family, the Moroccan Ambassador—and many others. In fact, the Moroccan King was so impressed with Dr. Marois’ skills that he flew him from Paris to Morocco in his private plane to treat his dental needs. Those same skills impressed many others that they have kept in contact with Pierre over the years.
In exhibiting his skills at that post, he again rose quickly to eventually become Chairman of the Dental Department of the American Hospital in 1980. By July of that same year, he was a member of the hospital’s Medical Board.
Citation photograph from U.S. Senator Estes Kefauver
With Dr. Marois’ reputation and well-known experience growing each day at his duties, he was appointed to the Board of Examiners for the Dental School of Paris Medical University in 1956. He served in that capacity until 1971.
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With Dr. Marois’ reputation and well-known experience growing each day at his duties, he was appointed to the Board of Examiners for the Dental School of Paris Medical University in 1956. He served in that capacity until 1971.
While at the Paris Medical University, Pierre earned his Master’s Degree for his work on the action of tetracycline antibiotics on bones and teeth. During this time in his life, Dr. Marois presented eight papers at various dental meetings on Operative Dentistry and gave 16 table clinics starting in Paris in 1950 for the Ministry of National Education; he gave his final table clinic to the South African Dental Society on amalgam use in 1972. His papers span the same time frame.
Dr. Marois was totally committed to dentistry in every way. He became an active member of the Federation Dentaire Internationale in 1952. He was invited to become a member of ICD in 1953 and a PFA Fellow in 1954.
He was a member of the American Dental Club of Paris, became their Secretary, and was awarded Honorary Membership. In 1956, he joined the Academy of General Dentistry becoming a Fellow of AGD in 1971. In 1954, Pierre joined the American Dental Society of Europe, serving on their Executive Committee (1977-1980) and as President (1980-81).
Dr. Marois had been an Associate Member of the ADA since 1961 and was esteemed with the awarding of “Honorary Member” in 1980 at the ADA’s 121st Annual Session in the Louisiana Superdome during the Opening Meeting.
By 1965, Dr. Marois was invited into ACD Fellowship and served as ACD’s European Section’s President for three years.
He also has been an active member of the French Dental Academy since 1970. Dr. Marois has been an active member of the Academie Nationale de Chirurgie-Dentaire. He joined the American Academy of Restorative Dentistry in 1976, and the American Academy of Operative Dentistry in 1978.
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President Kevin Roach presenting Award to Pierre Marois.
Dr. Marois was presented with PFA’s highest award, the Elmer S. Best Memorial Award, in 1986. In 2004 the Academy again honored his dedicated service to PFA with the Retiring International Trustee’s Award, a special PFA Service Award at a dedicated dinner for him, and named him “International Trustee-emeritus.” Actually, there were no higher awards to give this outstanding man to honor him. He has already received them all.
n 1994, Northwestern University awarded him their Alumni Merit Award, an honor of the highest esteem to indicate that his alma mater recognized all his contributions to our profession.
The French government has not overlooked Dr. Marois’ international reputation. They have presented him their official high recognition “Palmes Academiques” for his teaching abilities. He is “Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Merite’ and an “Officier de la Legion d’Honneur.” The last award was given to Pierre by President Mitterand of France himself at Elysee Palace.
Pierre is also “Grand Officier du Ouissam Allouite,” a special recognition by the King of Morocco. This is the highest award presented to a foreigner for providing outstanding services to Morocco.
With all that background and service to the international community, no one can dispute the vast impact Pierre Marois has had on his profession and his fellow man. But these experiences merely reflect the tip of the iceberg. The actions and projects that he has initiated, moved, touched on their way are too numerous to list. Several volumes would be needed to describe his life during the War, coming to Chicago and calling on the ADA Executive Director in person, visiting Washington, D.C., nearly being killed during a dinner party at the summer palace of the King of Morocco on 11 July 1965, saving the dentition of famous people at Paris’ American Hospital, hosting the ADA Officers at his own dinner party in 2000, to simply getting the PFA Hall of Fame located at the ADA Headquarters in Chicago, helping fund Le Conseil de l’Ordre des Chirurgien Dentistes of Paris’ mobile dental clinic, and serving on many international dental committees. In fact, this June his Conseil National de l’Ordre des Chirurgiens Dentistes presented him with their highest award, the Conseil’s Gold Medal, during the PFA Hall of Fame and Initiation Ceremony.
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But his gentleness and love is never more obvious than for his wife of over three decades, Seba, and his son Jeff. Jeff has distinguished himself during college in Boston as a U.S. Champion on the scull rowing team, and even today enjoys sailing along the shores of the northeastern United States.
Seba and Pierre relaxing at home
Seba is a painter in her own right. We have enjoyed many of her works in her studio above their apartment filled with distinctive art, but the view from their front balcony, the Eiffel Tower, is one of the finest of these. Their apartment is but a block or so from the Champs de Elysees. If the rear apartments were not in the way, the Arc de Triomphe could be seen from their abode as well. In the golden heart of Paris, Pierre and Seba are enjoying their retirement, though it is doubtful that either will ever actually “retire” from moving their worlds forward.
Pierre receiving the Retiring Trustee plaque from President RoachWe herald and are thankful for the important contributions that Pierre has continued to make for our profession and for PFA
His sage advice at our Board Meetings will be severely missed. He has sat for years listening to the heated debates on various topics, and then quietly proposed the solution to which everyone agrees. His maturity, his “political” experience as a kind arbitrator, his fatherly influence on us all selects the best path for PFA to follow beyond the shambles of argument. He touches everyone that way. And because of that talent, Dr. Pierre Marois moves our world forward.
He continues to serve well as an example and a mentor and a model for generations to come.
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