Queen Creek native Dr. Cayden Carpenter, O.D., opened Pecan Creek Eyecare in San Tan Valley on Monday, July 29.
"I am a third-generation eye doctor who grew up in Queen Creek and graduated from Queen Creek High School. I moved to San Tan Valley this spring," said Carpenter. "We are excited to live in the vibrant, growing area and to practice in the same town I live in. I look forward to serving neighbors and friends at Pecan Creek Eyecare. I have a wife and two kids at home, expecting our third in August."
Eye care is a family business, according to Carpenter. He said members of his immediate and extended family have worked in different capacities in eye clinics, from administrative to technicians to office managers.
"My great uncle was an eye doctor in Chandler and started his practice during Chandler's heyday in the 1970s. My father joined his practice around 2000 and soon opened another office in Gilbert just as that area was booming in the early 2000s," said Carpenter, adding that he was seeing patients in both of those East Valley offices before opening his own office in San Tan Valley on July 29. "They both think selflessly and they are great examples to me as a new doctor and practice owner. My family definitely inspired me to be an eye doctor, but I didn't know for sure what I wanted to be until I explored more career options during college."
Carpenter went to Brigham Young University in Utah for his undergrad and studied neuroscience. During that time he took two years to serve a church mission to Brazil. When he graduated from BYU, Carpenter said he applied to optometry schools around the country and was accepted to all of them, but decided to come back to his home state for four years of grad school at the Arizona College of Optometry at Midwestern University in Glendale, where he graduated from in May.
"Not only is eye care a family business for me, but the importance of eye exams hits even closer to home since my own daughter was diagnosed with an eye condition while I was in training that requires strong glasses to ensure the proper development of her eyes," Carpenter continued. "She was 3 years old when she got her first pair of cute frames from my optometry school, the Arizona College of Optometry."
Pecan Creek Eyecare provides comprehensive eye exams for the whole family, Carpenter said he see patients of all ages, from 1 to 101.
"All our doctors have experience with pediatrics and kids of their own and do well creating a rapport and getting them their best vision for success in school. Vision is critical to our learning as children and adults—over 80% of learning for school-aged children has a visual component—just think about how often you use your eyes," Carpenter explained. "Other services we are proud to offer are contact lenses, designer glasses, myopia control, dry eye relief, red eye checks, glaucoma and macular degeneration management, and cataract evaluations. Patients can expect an experience in tune with our motto: 'Making Modern Eyecare Easy, with cutting-edge technology to improve patient comfort and experience.'"
Pecan Creek Eyecare is located in San Tan Valley at 36351 N. Gantzel Road, Suite 128.
"I am so excited for Pecan Creek Eyecare to become a fixture of the growing and developing community here in San Tan Valley," added Carpenter. "I think my growth and practice as a doctor is symbolic of the expansion outward that our Valley has always embraced. We are proud to be an eye care clinic with local roots, family-owned and dedicated to the community, so different from all the big retail chain glasses stores."
