Raised in Colorado’s mountain country, Kathryn was a natural athlete. She graduated from the University of Colorado and was one of the first five women hired by the United States Secret Service in 1970. Her assignments included protection of the Queen of Spain, Indira Gandhi, Imelda Marcos, and the Kennedy Protective Detail of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Caroline Kennedy. Kathryn worked several Presidential campaign details, was assigned to a special counterfeit task force in New York, and worked numerous undercover assignments in New York Washington and Miami. She often says the experience gave her the distinct privilege of being “a mouse in the picket of history.”
In 1973, Kathryn left the Secret Service to marry a psychiatrist, and moved to Corpus Christi along the Texas Gulf Coast. Shortly before the birth of her son, Kathryn began an 18 year career in broadcasting as a television producer, local morning talk show host, and host of ABC’s “Take Two,” celebrity interviews broadcast nationwide via satellite. They included conversations with Lucille Ball, Dolly Parton and James Earl Jones to name a few. Kathryn estimates she has conducted more than 18,000 interviews to date. In 1991, Kathryn was elected to the ABC Network Marketing Board and served multiple terms.
Kathryn hosted the Children’s Miracle Network Telethon for Driscoll Children’s Hospital for a decade and is a founding member of “Clowns Who Care,” a charitable clown troupe. On any given week, you can find her alter ego, “Sassy the Sheriff,” bringing miles of smiles to the faces of young patients. In 1998, Kathryn and Cecil were honored as “Volunteers of the Year” by the Volunteer Center of the Coastal Bend, and Kathryn was also awarded the coveted American Institute for Public Service’s Jefferson Award for founding a breast cancer screening program. To date, Corpus Christi’s “First Friday” program has provided free mammograms to more than 15,000 women in need.
Most recently, Kathryn founded RedCab Productions, a publishing company that produced and sold a series of popular coffee table books, a children’s book and a commemorative CD, chronicling the first significant snowfall in South Texas in 100 years – up to 14”! As film, disposable cameras, and digital camera batteries flew off the shelves, it quickly became clear this would be one of the most-documented events in the area’s recent memory. Childers partnered with a Texas-based grocery chain, organized a photos contest, and was promptly flooded with entries and personal stories from people throughout the Coastal Bend. The overwhelming success of the first volume of “Snow” in 2005 led to a companion book, “More Snow” in 2006 as well as “More Snow for Kids,” written by Kathryn’s son, Clark Childers, and illustrated by renowned ceramic artist William Wilhelmi. To date, more than 140,000 are in print and have grossed more than half a million in sales.
Today, Kathryn speaks to organizations of all sizes all over the country sharing her personal mantra of “Do It Scared!” crafted after years of embracing – and more importantly seizing – unique and unexpected opportunities. She shares stories of her amazing life’s journey while coaching audiences to identify and “own” their personal “scared” – the first step to courage.