DOWNEY — Dr. Konita Wilks, director of dentistry at Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center, was honored Saturday by L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger at her annual Tribute to Veterans & Military Families. 

As part of this special (virtual) event, veterans working for LA County were recognized for rising to the challenges of the pandemic and continuing to embody the same spirit of service they did when they were in active duty.

Dr. Wilks is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and a Navy Veteran, with service as a Surface Warfare Officer. She was in active duty from 1994-2005 and served in the Persian gulf under Operations Iraqi Freedom, Operations Enduring Freedom, and during 9/11. 

After her service, Dr. Wilks received her dental degree and graduated with honors from UCLA. Now a mother of four, she is the director of Rancho’s dental clinic, which specializes in treating individuals with physical and developmental disabilities, as well as those with debilitating chronic medical conditions.

Serving also as Rancho’s Triage Officer, during the multiple COVID surges Dr. Wilks ensured that personal protective equipment and supplies went to the patients and staff that needed it most. She and her team also made sure that the 35,000 surgical masks donated to the Rancho Los Amigos Foundation were distributed quickly and efficiently.

As the COVID vaccine became available, Dr. Wilks led the efforts to deploy her dental clinic dentists to administer the vaccine, which allowed Rancho’s nurses to continue to care for their patients. 

“It was awesome that our dentists were able to directly support the pandemic response efforts,” said Dr. Wilks. “We all felt that it was so cool to be a part of history… getting to see firsthand how excited and relieved people were to get the vaccine.  For us, that was the highpoint of such a disastrous year.”

Dr. Wilks is a strong advocate for Rancho’s patients and as such often works with the Rancho Los Amigos Foundation and Las Floristas to provide the absolute best care and services to her patients through state of the art dentistry rooms and affordable patient transportation. 

Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center is grateful to have such an incredible individual like Dr. Konita Wilks on staff.  

“Dr. Wilks is an amazing member of our Rancho team,” said CEO Aries Limbaga. “We are extremely grateful for her service to Rancho and honored to recognize her distinguished service to this County.”

For more information about the programs and services funded by the Rancho Los Amigos Foundation or to make a donation, please call (562) 385-7053 or visit www.RanchoFoundation.org