To Listen is to love

Dr. Kim Robinson at her home in Argyle on Jan. 19. (NTC/Juan Guajardo)

D

r. Kim Robinson thought she was retiring to a sleepy little community in Denton County, but God had other plans.

Within her first year, the Denton Record-Chronicle ran four front-page articles on local human trafficking incidents, which grabbed the attention of the psychologist who has two decades of experience counseling sexual abuse victims.

“So I began researching, just how bad is this? That’s when I put together a program to teach the public about why DFW is such a center of human trafficking,” she said.

Once again, in the face of a large problem, Robinson takes action.

TO LISTEN AND TO HEAL

Robinson’s career has taken many twists and turns, but it revolves around a single purpose, to bring comfort and healing to those who are suffering.

Her core principle derived from a ruptured appendix and subsequent blood poisoning when she was 16, and doctors warned her parents that she might not live.

She recalled, “It helped me appreciate life in general and how we deal with very scary situations,” adding that her faith helped her overcome the crisis.

Robinson began a career in nursing and worked with kidney dialysis and transplant patients, a population facing the reality of death. While assisting with the physical aspects of their disease and treatment, she became fascinated by the psychological aspects. 

Robinson returned to school and became a licensed professional counselor and earned a doctorate in psychology at the University of Houston. She has worked with patients with brain injuries in Houston, taught at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls and Queen Mary University of London, and practiced trauma-related patient care. 

However, her work in mental health clinics at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls and the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth drew her attention to sexual abuse.

She treated enlisted men and women for post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health concerns, but she “noticed there was an incredible number of young people who disclosed their sexual abuse” to her. Many joined the military to escape an abusive home environment.

When she saw a bulletin announcement about volunteering with the diocese’s Safe Environment Program, she jumped at the opportunity.

She said, “I wanted to cast my net a little wider, influence a greater number of people, and talk about prevention, detection, and what you need to do once you suspect something. It’s a very difficult topic for a lot of people to talk about.”

Robinson was in the first group trained to be facilitators in 2018, and she has since led about 80 sessions, training almost 1,500 volunteers, employees, and clergy. 

Sandra Schrader-Farry, director of Safe Environment, appreciates Robinson’s commitment and expertise, saying Robinson “has made a significant impact within our program and our parishes by raising awareness about the warning signs and symptoms of abuse. Her dedication to providing safe environment sessions and training her fellow facilitators is invaluable. Kim’s deep faith and professionalism in caring for her church and community make her an exceptional facilitator and a wonderful role model.” 

RETIREMENT WORKS

Since her failed retirement to Denton County, Robinson continues to lead two Safe Environment sessions each month at her home parish of St. Mark in Argyle, and she volunteers to travel to other locations when needed.

She’s shared the human trafficking program she created with diocesan, community, and university audiences, and plans are underway to introduce the material to diocesan Catholic schools. 

“The estimated 750,000 traffickers of the world have access to all of our homes through the internet,” she said, “so what we can do as responsible parents is to make sure and put as many filters and monitoring systems in place so that we are able to detect it early, educate our kids about it in age-appropriate ways, and then know what to do if we figure out something has happened.”

Human trafficking, she added, is the fastest growing illegal enterprise in the world.
“The trauma of some human trafficking victims is every bit as bad as the prisoners of war,” stated the psychologist, who has worked with both types of victims.

Another group of people Robinson has worked to comfort and heal includes individuals and families suffering reproductive loss.

She has co-founded a support group, “Healing the Silent Grief of Reproductive Loss,” that meets at St. Mark Parish. Robinson has a daughter, but for years she suffered from infertility during a time when the emotional heartache was not discussed.

“I was an infertility case, and so we include infertility in the reproductive loss,” along with miscarriage, stillbirth, and neonatal death, she said.

“For anyone who’s ever been given the message from their doctor that you are not likely to ever have children, [infertility] is a reproductive loss as well. And there’s a grief that goes along with that.”

SOURCE OF STRENGTH

Carrying other’s burdens can weigh heavily on the counselor. 

She explained, “My faith is my moral compass, because when you hear some of the stories I’ve heard, you hear some of the harshest cruelty humans can inflict on other humans, and you need faith to get through that. It also helps me to be humble enough to recognize that I can’t do this by myself. I do need guidance. And I do believe through prayer that God has given me tools that even I didn’t know I had.” 

The Gospel stories of Jesus healing also bolster Robinson. 

She said, “I see myself as both a healer and a teacher, in much the same way that Jesus was a healer and a teacher. I certainly don’t take any credit for miracles, but I know I have made a difference in people’s lives through His grace. 

“But like Jesus, I teach with stories; Jesus taught with parables. I truly believe my work is a true calling from God, and my faith is manifested through my work.”