Dr. John Alden Coleman, DDS

How Dr. Coleman Came to Dentistry
A Fortunate Accident
I was a happy and outgoing sixteen-year-old who envisioned going into engineering. I had always enjoyed working with my hands, and my father was a mechanical engineer for Howard Hughes Aircraft. It seemed like the natural career. One fateful summer day, however, that changed.
While waterskiing I took a bad fall, and the ski (one of the old, heavy wooden kind) came up and hit me square in the mouth. All of my front teeth were broken. It would take four years and four dental specialists to rebuild my smile (now it would only take six months). At the time, I thought I would never look the same. How could I smile with my mouth destroyed like that? How could I be in front of others? For those four years, I felt like I couldn't be me—if I couldn't smile back at the people who made me laugh or cared about me, well then what?
During my treatment I found myself giving suggestions to the oral surgeon, the orthodontist, and the two …reconstructive dentists on the shape and balance of the smile they were restoring to me. They had the technical skills to give me a strong, healthy mouth, but there's a difference between a set of new teeth and a fresh, brilliant smile and I knew that even then. That's when I decided to study dentistry. It was a perfect fit, allowing me to bring together my love of science and working with my hands with a sense of artistry and helping others.
After those four years of constant dental work, I was amazed with how my life changed. Meeting new people became fun and exciting. I was easily approachable again. I hadn't realized how much my lack of smiling had made me seem stand-offish. I was always a happy person, but when I wouldn't allow myself to smile, nobody else knew it. I'm still immensely grateful to those four dentists for giving back to me the ability to enjoy every day—with a smile, of course.
Personal Life
Dr. Coleman grew up in Huntington Beach, California, as the second oldest of seven brothers and sisters. As a young man he competed in many sports and still does to this day. With his wife, Dee, he has four children and has enjoyed coaching their soccer and Little League teams over the past twenty five years. His three sons are all graduates of Vista High School, and his daughter Erin will be soon.
Their oldest, John Coleman III, recently completed nine years of dental training, culminating at the New York University School of Dentistry, and has joined Dr. Coleman at the Center for Smile Enhancement.
Dr. and Mrs. Coleman have a passion for the two charities they're involved with. One is the Smiles for Life program, through which Dr. Coleman donates all the proceeds from teeth whitening from March through June to St. Jude's Children's Research. The second charity is the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Mrs. Coleman's mother became involved with the MDA over forty years ago, and now Mrs. Coleman and Dr. "C" are continuing her legacy.
Training and Experience
In the community and among his peers, Dr. Coleman has a sterling reputation as one of the most extensively trained and experienced dentists practicing in San Diego. Beyond receiving his bachelor's degree from University of California – Irvine in 1978 and his D.D.S. degree from Georgetown University in 1982, Dr. Coleman has made continual education and innovation in the field a top priority. He received advanced orthodontic training in 1984, studied advanced techniques in implant and reconstructive dentistry at UCLA in 1985, and was one of the first dentists to use the "instant orthodontics" technique that has gaining prominence today. As a sustaining member of the Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, he has had his work evaluated and approved by a national board—placing him in the top 1% of practicing dentists in the country. He is the current president of the Southwest Chapter of the Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.
In addition, Dr. Coleman is deeply proud of his ten years of experience as a volunteer at the St. Vincent de Paul dental clinic for the homeless.
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