Dentist fulfills dream, preserves nearly a century of community trust

Lori Kaye Lodes

Contributor

August 10, 2026

FOND DU LAC – Like many dentists, Dylan Fogel said he dreamed of one day owning his own practice.

After five years in corporate dentistry, Dylan said he and his wife, Brianna, began discussing what they wanted their future to look like after marrying in the summer of 2024.

Opening a private practice, he said, quickly rose to the top of the list. 

But when that opportunity finally arrived, Dylan said it wasn’t simply a chance to buy a dental office.

He said it was an opportunity to become the steward of one of Fond du Lac’s longest-standing family dental practices.

When he officially purchased Doyle-Kelly Family Dentistry in 2025, Dylan said he wasn’t starting a business from scratch.

Instead, he said he was taking responsibility for a practice with roots dating back to 1932 – one that had cared for generations of families under three successive dentists and became woven into the fabric of the Fond du Lac community.

After months of conversations and planning, Dylan said the moment he and Kathy Doyle-Kelly sat down to sign the formal papers felt like the culmination of a long and intentional process. 

“We shared a hug – it was a tremendous process going through it,” he said.

Dylan said the move represented the next stage of both his and Brianna’s careers. 

“We made a decision to get into business for ourselves and to pursue that part of a journey as a dentist,” he said. 

The couple said they started looking at options, choosing to keep their search to Wisconsin as Brianna’s parents are from Central Wisconsin, and they wanted to stay in proximity to them. 

Dylan said they were also drawn to the greater Fox Valley area, where he was fortunate to be introduced to Doyle-Kelly Family Dentistry as part of their search.

“We hit it off, and it became a universe-comes-together kind of moment,” he said. 

Dylan said for him, entrepreneurship wasn’t simply about putting his name on the building.

He said it was about carrying forward someone else’s life’s work – actually, three people’s work. 

Dylan said Doyle-Kelly Family Dentistry represented the third generation of a family-owned practice that had served residents of Fond du Lac County. 

Buying more than a dental practice

Independent dental practices, Dylan said, are built one patient relationship at a time, with reputation, trust, employee longevity and patient loyalty often becoming the practice’s greatest assets. 

That reality, he said, became clear long before he owned the practice.

After exchanging emails with Doyle-Kelly, Dylan said he and Brianna made an unplanned stop one evening while driving home from an event to see the practice’s building for the first time. 

“At the time, the [idea of ownership] was just a whisper in the wind as we were just starting the process,” he said. “But I remember seeing the Christmas lights on the building and in the tree, and it felt warm and welcoming and comfortable. Once I got a chance to go inside, it was like walking into a home.”

Dylan said the warmth projected from the outside was only the beginning, with the practice’s team carrying that same feeling inside with a welcoming team, plenty of laughter and relaxed patients. 

He said he knows a dental office is not typically where people want to spend their time, but patients consistently shared the same message he had already observed: the office felt like home.

“There can be a sterility to these clinical offices, but this just had a warmth about it that was very attractive,” he said. “It fits Kathy tremendously and represents me as well, and it felt right.”

To honor the practice’s history and give patients time to adjust, Dylan said the practice retained the Doyle-Kelly name for approximately a year before transitioning to Fogel Family Dentistry. 

He said the change was marked by new signage and a recent ribbon cutting with Envision Greater Fond du Lac.

Dylan said the history and culture he inherited – built over three generations by Doyle-Kelly’s grandfather, father and herself – is what made the transition so meaningful.

That legacy, he said, began nearly a century ago with Gordon Thibadeau, one of Fond du Lac’s earliest dentists, who established the practice in 1932. 

Dylan said he was impressed to learn that Thibadeau was among the first dentists in the city, initially starting a practice with several other dentists before eventually establishing his own.

“It’s rare to see practices with that kind of continuation and, really, the spirit of the community,” he said.

Dylan said his son, J. Michael Doyle, later joined him, followed by Kathy Doyle-Kelly, who became the third generation to lead the practice after graduating from Marquette University School of Dentistry in 1990. 

Honoring that legacy, Dylan said, was essential to his pursuit of the practice.

Though the practice now operates as Fogel Family Dentistry, Dylan said Doyle-Kelly continues to see patients while determining the timeline for her eventual retirement.

The gradual transition, he said, allows longtime patients the opportunity to become comfortable with the ownership change and the practice’s next chapter. 

“She is still seeing patients right now, and [I have] a tremendous amount of respect for the legacy,” he said. “So, when I came in, I said, ‘You can end [your chapter] any way you want, and you deserve that right.’”

Culture as a competitive advantage

Dylan said the private practice employs 12 people, including hygienists and assistants who have served patients for years, as the team’s tenure is significant. 

“It’s a place that people want to be a part of, and I’m trying to continue that and foster that culture,” he said.

Dylan said he believes that culture has become one of the practice’s defining competitive advantages.

Many team members, he said, have spent their lives in Fond du Lac, allowing them to know generations of local families personally.

“My front desk person knows about your kids and the grandkids and all these connections because Fond du Lac is a little big town,” he said.

Dylan said the sense of connection he found at the practice reminds him of something from his own childhood.

Growing up in rural Arizona, he said he remembers a neighborhood barbershop where children’s heights were marked on a wall over the years – a simple tradition that reflected the relationships built there.

“I thought that was the coolest touch,” he said. “That essence and sense of spirit is something that stuck with me.”

Dylan said this same philosophy shapes the experience he hopes patients have when they walk through the doors of Fogel Family Dentistry today.

“We want to be the first smile you see that day,” he said. “Life can be hard, and if we can alleviate some of that while taking care of you, [we do].” 

Investing for the future

Preserving tradition, Dylan said, does not mean standing still.

Though the practice continues to honor the approaches that built its reputation, he said he also carefully evaluates new tools and technologies that can enhance patient care. 

“Dentistry has moved to digital for decades now, and now we’re incorporating AI into some of our technologies and software,” he said. 

Dylan said the practice increasingly relies on digital scanning, laboratories using 3D printing and other technologies that improve efficiency and patient outcomes.

Though laser dentistry may become another future investment, Dylan said any adoption will be based on evidence and patient benefit rather than simply purchasing the newest technology.

But those considerations are a ways out, he said, as he prefers to focus on the team and patients as he gets further acclimated. 

“You spend the first year getting [your] feet underneath you, getting the team together and getting to know the patients – then you can grow,” he said.

Continuing the next chapter

Dylan said his path to dentistry isn’t what many would describe as traditional.

After earning an undergraduate degree in social sciences from Lawrence University, Dylan said he initially worked in education, supporting high school students with special needs before deciding to pursue a career in health care. 

He completed two years of post-baccalaureate science coursework before attending dental school, a journey he said required persistence and countless hours of shadowing practicing dentists.

Today, Dylan said he and Brianna are putting down roots in Fond du Lac as they prepare to welcome their first child in January and become more connected to the community.

He said he hopes to build on the practice’s tradition of service by expanding volunteer efforts, including free dental days, while continuing partnerships with SSM Health, local churches, Marian University and the Marian University Scholarship Foundation. 

Dylan said the practice’s reach extends well beyond Fond du Lac County, with patients traveling from across Wisconsin – including Appleton, Sheboygan, Dane County and Milwaukee.

One family from Chicago, he said, continues making the trip because of its longstanding ties to the practice.

Some of today’s patients, Dylan said, represent the fourth generation of families who have trusted Doyle-Kelly with their care. 

“I love hearing these stories about patients who came to the practice – then their kids came, and grandkids came and even great-grandkids are coming,” he said. “It’s a magical thing, and I feel so tremendously fortunate to be part of it.”

Head to fonddulacsmiles.com for more.