[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 130 (Monday, October 11, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1870]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             ON THE RETIREMENT OF CAPTAIN ROBERT C. WILKENS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SUSAN A. DAVIS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 7, 2004

  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that 
I rise today to recognize and honor the service and career of Captain 
Robert C. Wilkens as he retires after 32 years of distinguished service 
in support of our Nation. Throughout his career, Captain Wilkens has 
epitomized the Navy's core values of honor, courage, and commitment, 
and has displayed exceptional leadership and dedication to his country 
and commands.
  Captain Wilkens earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy 
from the Medical University of South Carolina in 1974. He then embarked 
on a remarkable journey in the Navy's Medical Service Corps, beginning 
as a staff pharmacist at the Naval Hospital, Charleston, South 
Carolina.
  Captain Wilkens' next tour of duty was right here in the U. S. 
Capitol, where he served as the Director of Pharmacy in the Office of 
the Attending Physician to Congress from 1981 to 1985. He then entered 
advanced training as a Pharmacy resident at the Navy's Flagship 
hospital, the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, in 
1986.
  Captain Wilkens continued with his stellar career as the Pharmacy 
Clinical Coordinator and Director of Inpatient Services at the Naval 
Hospital, Portmouth, Virginia. Upon completion of that assignment in 
1990, he became a Doctor of Pharmacy Candidate at the Medical College 
of Virginia in Richmond.
  Captain Wilkens then served as the Chairman of the Pharmacy 
Department at Naval Medical Center, San Diego, California from 1992-
1999. By special request, he next served as the Specialty Leader and 
Consultant to the Navy Surgeon General for Pharmacy Policy at the 
Bureau of Medicine and Surgery in Washington, DC. Upon completion of 
that exceptional tour in 2001, Captain Wilkens returned to San Diego, 
and served once again as Chairman of the Pharmacy Department at the 
Naval Medical Center. He was home.
  Captain Wilkens completes his distinguished and honorable career 
leaving a lasting impression of inspired leadership, mastery of science 
in pharmacy and policy, and allencompassing support for the Navy's 
medical readiness programs and quality of life.
  I am pleased to recognize and thank Bob Wilkens for his long and 
dedicated service to this country and join with his friends and 
colleagues in wishing him ``Fair Winds and Following Seas'' as he and 
his wife, Linda, leave the Navy after 32 years of remarkable 
contributions and service.

                          ____________________