Former ADA trustee, Texas Dental Association president passes away

Hilton Israelson, D.D.S., was ADA trustee from 2011-2015

Hilton Israelson, D.D.S., a Texas-based periodontist and former ADA trustee, passed away on May 19.

Dr. Israelson, who had been providing periodontal services to patients of greater Dallas since 1981, was an ADA trustee from 2011-15.

He was also a past president of the Texas Dental Association and the Dallas County Dental Society.

According to an online biography on his practice website, a passion for helping people, along with his brother's example, led him to become a periodontist.

"My older brother became a dentist, and I saw how fulfilling his work with patients was, so I decided to follow his path," Dr. Israelson said in the bio. "I am honored to be able to help my patients improve their quality of life by improving their oral function and the aesthetics of their smile."

A native of South Africa, Dr. Israelson received his dental degree in 1973 from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg School of Oral Health Sciences. He then came to the U.S. for his periodontal specialist training and residency and graduated from the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston.

From 1977 to 1979, Dr. Israelson was a clinical instructor in periodontics at the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, and from 1979 to 1989, Dr. Israelson was a faculty member at the Texas A&M College of Dentistry (formally Baylor College of Dentistry) as assistant clinical professor. From 1989 to 2000, he served as an associate clinical professor in the college’s department of periodontics.

Among other accomplishments, Dr. Israelson was the impetus behind the component society acquiring the standalone building that it now owns and occupies[KG1] , according to an emailed statement from the Dallas County Dental Society. He was the founder of the Dallas County Dental Society Dental Assisting School, a state-of-the-art facility designed to educate and train high-quality dental assistants and spent time on the Dallas County Dental Society Foundation board.

Dr. Israelson is survived by his wife, Maureen, their three children, Alana, Carla and Justin, and their six grandsons.

A memorial fund in his name will be set up through Dallas Jewish Community Foundation, with an endowment benefiting the Dallas County Dental Society Foundation.

A memorial service was held on May 21 at the Restland Funeral Home in Dallas.