Registration- Youth Workshop (includes lunch) FREE
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Kara Robinson Chamberlain
In June 2002, when Kara was just 15 years old, her life changed dramatically.
While in the front yard of her best friend's house, a man approached her and put a gun to her neck telling her to come with him. He forced her into a plastic storage container in the back seat of his car and took her to his apartment where she was held captive and assaulted for 18 hours until her daring escape.
While her captor was asleep, Kara escaped the restraints and his apartment. Kara went to law enforcement and was able to give them information that led them back to the apartment of her captor and identified him as the man responsible for at least three other unsolved homicides.
Following the identification and death of her captor, Kara went on to form relationships within law enforcement and complete the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy. She went on to work with the agency that investigated her case as a school resource officer, a sex crime and child abuse investigator, and a victim's advocate until the birth of her children.
Through the years, Kara realized that she survived for a very specific purpose: to spread hope and encouragement to other survivors. To remind them that they are not alone, that they can heal, and that they are stronger than what happened to them.
That we are who we are because of what happened but we are not defined by it.
Kara went on to get married and currently has two little boys and two dogs.
She currently uses her experience as well as years of work in law enforcement to speak to groups around the country. She tells her story as a means to help educate those who work with victims and empower individuals to be the best version of themselves they can be, regardless of their past.
Kara is involved in several organizations, outreach, and advocacy groups and projects as a means of supporting her community.
She is also active on social media where she creates content that shares her story, answers questions, shares advice on healing trauma, empowering victims to become survivors, and helping loved ones support survivors. Her goal is to inspire other survivors to just keep going because they are not defined by their past.
Workshop Title: Empowerment and Resilience: A Survivor’s Journey
Workshop Description: Kara shares her story of survival with a level of detail tailored to the audience’s needs. Abducted and held captive as a teenager, Kara’s daring escape and collaboration with law enforcement led to the identification and capture of a serial killer. Leveraging her extensive experience as a survivor, former law enforcement officer, advocate, and media professional, Kara provides practical applications for empowering victims and fostering resilience.
Kara’s presentation goes beyond her personal narrative, offering valuable insights into how law enforcement and support professionals can effectively empower victims and encourage their resilience. She draws on her diverse background to highlight best practices in victim support, emphasizing the importance of compassion, understanding, and strength. Her keynote equips audiences with the tools and strategies needed to make a meaningful impact in the lives of those they serve.
With a focus on hope and healing, Kara’s message resonates deeply, inspiring individuals and organizations to prioritize the empowerment of victims and the cultivation of resilience. This keynote is a powerful reminder of the strength within us all and the vital role we play in supporting others through their darkest times.
Robin’s work is rooted at the intersection of her background in Justice Studies, Clinical Psychology/Mental Health Counselling and Mind-body Wellness. She is a licensed trauma therapist and specializes in somatic interventions for trauma resolution. Robin is a nationally recognized presenter on trauma, resilience and victim advocacy and has created trauma healing programs that incorporate alternative healing modalities such as trauma-informed yoga, mindfulness, nature-therapy, art, music, cultural heritage projects, and peer support programs. With over 22 years of coaching, consulting, and wellness program development, Robin provides organizations with the best integrative practices for maintaining healthy and resilient individuals, families, and communities.
Workshop Title: Resilience Response
Workshop Description: This comprehensive workshop will provide greater insight into how to manage and mitigate toxic stress and vicarious trauma through mind-body health perspectives. We will explore simple and effective somatic and integrative practices that will help cultivate personal and professional resilience.
Angie Burleson, APP, is a Polarity Therapist and Executive Director of the AZ ACEs Consortium. She is committed to changing the conversation surrounding trauma and ACEs by empowering individuals and connecting communities to become recovery ready through a trauma informed lens. Angie’s own struggle with addiction, family experiences, and education gives her a multi-faceted and unique perspective.
Workshop Title: Neurobiological Impacts of ACEs & Trauma
Workshop Description: An in-depth overview of how toxic stress and trauma have an impact on our brains and bodies with a heavy focus on neurobiology and behaviors that are expected in a dysregulated system. Understanding the connection between unresolved trauma and risky behaviors and coping mechanisms is crucial when working with populations who have experienced adversity. Also, understand the impacts of trauma work including vicarious trauma and the impact work has on our bodies and brains.
Jerald Monahan
Jerald Monahan has served the public safety community for over four decades, In June of 2021, Chief Monahan became the Program Director of the Administration of Justice Studies (AJS) program at Yavapai College. As the AJS program director he serves as a faculty member teaching Administration of Justice Studies courses. He is also the Director of the newly created Yavapai College Justice Institute.
Professor Monahan is a certified Protective Factors Framework and Mandated Supporter Trainer and has presented on both topics at various locations in Arizona. He also is a Peace Lecturer, certified by the International Women’s Peace Group.
Chief Monahan holds a Master’s degree in Leadership and a Bachelor’s degree in Public Safety Administration both from Grand Canyon University. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, the 230th Session.
Workshop Title: Considering Yourself a Mandated Supporter
Workshop Description: The ‘Considering Yourself a Mandated Supporter’ Training is an initiative of Prevent Child Abuse Arizona and the DCS Office of Prevention. Through this training, participants will examine how they can protect children from adversity by considering themselves not just mandated reporters, but mandated supporters. The strategies and techniques explored are rooted in the Strengthening Families™ Protective Factors Framework, an approach that recognizes when families have access to the supports and tools needed to deal with life's stressors, children thrive.
Kate Dobler
Kate Dobler serves as the Arizona State Opioid Treatment Authority (SOTA) and the Women’s Services Coordinator (WSC). She earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Arizona in Family Studies with an emphasis in Child Development, a Certificate in Public Management from Arizona State University, and a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership - Community College and Higher Education from Northern Arizona University. Kate is an endorsed infant toddler mental health professional driven to improve the odds for our state's mothers, babies, and their families. She is a change agent committed to making this world better for kids. Kate is a systems thinker who is passionate about creating meaningful, real, and relevant change, working to build systems that meet people where they are, with what they need, when they need it, and in ways that feel like help. At the core of her work is the belief that babies live in families, families live in communities, and it takes all of us to support healthy, happy, and safe families.
Workshop Title: OUD Treatment: Families at the Center of Care
Workshop Description: This session will include an overview of the State Opioid Treatment Authority (SOTA) and Women’s Services Network Coordinator (WSN-C) roles in Arizona. Arizona’s SOTA and WSN-C, Kate Dobler, will discuss theory, research, and best practices that inform harm-reductive substance use disorder treatment and recovery supports for pregnant and parenting people. The Arizona Opioid Treatment Locator will be presented as a tool to understand the availability, location, and accessibility of MOUD treatment resources for this population across the state. Harm reduction has a long history as a collection of products, practices, and knowledge intended to keep people safe and alive - to keep them away from harm. This session will explore the intersection of harm reduction and substance use disorder treatment and recovery, perhaps in ways not thought of before.