Robin N. Lucas

34 D.M.D. Dentist - Robin N. Lucas, D.M.D. PA, Hoboken, N.J.

Robin Naomi Lucas says the women in her life helped shape her character when she was growing up in her native Guyana. Her mother, Paulette Browne, gave her a strong work ethic; her Aunt Mauva emphasized that education was the ticket to freedom, especially for women; Aunt Princess, now deceased, inspired her to take chances. Princess raised 10 children with money earned from selling goods in the town market and sent many of them to England for higher education. “My aunt’s philosophy was, ‘I dig a hole to fill a hole.’ To me her words meant that she was taking everything one step at a time. She had no grand plan. As the need arose, she handled it,” explains Lucas, 35, who is expecting her first child this month.

Lucas’s family moved to the United States in 1984. Lucas obtained a B.S. in human ecology-health from Rutgers University-Cook College, and in 1995 she graduated from Temple University in Philadelphia as a doctor of dental medicine. In 2000, with five years of solid experience behind her, she opened a private practice in Hoboken, N.J. As an affiliate of the Hoboken Organization against Poverty and Economic Stress (HOPES) program, the practice provides dental screenings for preschool children. Lucas volunteers in the local Head Start program and at the annual Hoboken health fair. She also provides dental screenings for pupils from kindergarten through fifth grade, gives health talks and participates in an annual Career Day program. She has provided dental examinations and general health counseling to villagers in Guyana.

Lucas enjoys salsa dancing. “I saw a program on ballroom dancing and saw them do Latin dances. It was like a fantasy for me,” she says. She hopes to expand her dental business by opening a satellite office. A self-described workaholic who has trouble delegating, she contemplates the effects impending motherhood will have on her management style. “The key is letting go of the reins and finding a good team; that’s what I’m going to have to work on,” she explains. “As long as I know my business is okay.”