OPEN WIDE
W HERE ARE THEY NOW?
by LOIS ELFMAN Te first time Dr. Brian Wells
stepped onto the ice to try out with Shelby Lyons, he could envision them on the podium. “I had very clear pictures in my
PAIRS SKATER SHIFTS
head the second I stroked around with her,” said Wells, a four-time U.S. senior pairs medalist (1995–98) and two-time World competitor with Lyons. “I remember the rink in Syra- cuse, New York, where I first tried out with her. Tere wasn’t a doubt in my mind that it would happen. I didn’t know it would be less than a year lat- er, but I knew it would happen.” In the years since, Wells, 45, has
GOAL-ORIENTED FOCUS TO A CAREER IN DENTISTRY
used his instincts to decide what path to follow. As much as he loved skat- ing, his long-term plans took him far from the sport, but are now bringing him back just a bit. After his partnership with Lyons
ended in 1998 following their second trip to the World Championships, he was trying to decide on his future. Longtime friend Archie Tse was liv- ing and working in New York City, and Wells decided to join him there. “I had the opportunity to make
some decisions,” Wells recalled. “I was 27. I wondered, Do I find another partner? Do I do shows? I was already coaching, which I enjoyed. I said to myself, Where do I want to be in 10 years? I decided it wasn’t in an ice skating rink.” When Wells lived and trained
in Delaware, he became acquainted with an oral surgeon named Dr. Ray- mond Fonseca, dean of the Universi- ty of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, who was the parent of a skater. Trying to decide what career path to pursue, he contacted Fonse- ca, who told Wells if he focused and applied himself in his undergraduate studies, he should be able to get into dental school. He decided to attend Baruch
College (part of the City University of New York system) after visiting the school’s natural sciences department. On the first day of school, he
sat next to a young woman who had already earned her bachelor’s degree, but was completing the premed re- quirements in order to apply to med- ical school. About a year later, he and Marguerite (Maggie) began dating — their first date was going skating at SkyRink. Wells did well at Baruch and
Dr. Brian Wells performs a procedure at his successful practice, at which his wife and sister also work.
was accepted into several prestigious dental schools. With his fiancée al- ready in med school in New York, he had a hard choice to make, ulti- mately deciding that Harvard School of Dental Medicine in Boston was simply too good to pass up. Every weekend for two years (except one
46 JUNE/JULY 2016
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
