Edmonton Author – Kathy King

Kathy grew up on a farm ten miles from Small Town, Alberta, a third generation homesteader and the oldest of five children. She remembers early days without electricity and water, attended a small one-room school for her first six years of formal education, was thrilled to be bussed to Town School for subsequent grades, and couldn’t wait to move to a Big City.

Escape came with studying philosophy (BA) at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and training as a clinical social worker (BSW, MSW) in Calgary, Alberta. She co-authored a text book on Child Sexual Abuse way back in 1987 with her thesis adviser Christopher Bagley.

Employment included government service pre-MSW, hospital social work in Alberta and Nova Scotia, and later many years with Employee Assistance Programs. Kathy retired in 2009 after 35+ years of service and more recently published “Elephants in the Room” for the Fall 2016 Advocate, a social work magazine.

Over the years she experienced being a single parent, step-parent, and grieving parent. Always a supporter for the vulnerable and exploited, her involvement became more personal when her teen daughter began to experiment with drugs and eventually disappeared from the streets of Edmonton in 1997. Kathy transitioned from academic to popular writing to share her daughter’s story and promote increased awareness and services for vulnerable young women.

Primary volunteer involvement includes Victims of Homicide and CEASE: Centre to End All Sexual Exploitation, both in Edmonton. She was a frequent speaker both in her professional and volunteer work. A 2016 Edmonton keynote talk “From Personal to Political” can be viewed at https://youtu.be/eBebaz48stw.

Kathy is happily married and shares the role of grandparent to eight children in Edmonton. She is a strong believer in the power of philanthropy and public service. Travel, reading, writing and professional development are favorite hobbies.