Ginger (Holmes) Robinson
Ginger (Holmes) Robinson, BSN '81
Since their college days, Ginger (Holmes) Robinson (BSN, '81) and her husband, Randy (UM-C, BA-Biology, '80), shared a dream of offering their medical services to the world's most needy individuals.
They married in 1981and lived in Kansas City, MO through the 1980s. Ginger worked as Randy obtained a DDS (UMKC, '84) and an MD (UMKC, '88) and simultaneously completed a four-year oral and maxillofacial surgery residency (UMKC, '89). It was during this time the couple had three children - Eric, Scott and Anna.
In 1990 Randy, Ginger, and their children were invited to France. There Randy completed a year-long fellowship with the world's "father" of craniofacial surgery, Dr. Paul Tessier, in Paris.
Their return to the States took them to Colorado where they founded Face the Challenge (FTC) - a non-profit organization whose members travel around the world surgically correcting facial deformities of the world's youngest and poorest. Thus far, FTC's teams and associates have provided approximately 1075 free facial surgeries. Accounts and photos can be found at: www.facethechallenge.org.
The Robinson's faith plays a dominant role in their personal and professional lives. And they established the organization to show the compassion of Christ by providing medical care primarily for children, but also for adults, in developing countries. They believe that by using the gifts of mercy and the latest skills in health care, FTC can improve the lives with all of whom it come in contact.
Earlier this month, FTC's 23rd international team returned to Vietnam for the 19th time. On most of their trips they have operated at the two main facial surgery specialty hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City (area pop. ~12 million). For the second time since 2001 they traveled in vans to Phan Thiet (pop. 100,000) in Binh Thuan Province next to the South China Sea. They operated on pediatric patients with cleft lip and palate deformities at the general hospital. Then in Ho Chi Minh City they worked with the surgical staff at the national hospital performing lengthy, more complex surgeries on patients with congenital, traumatic, tumor-caused and growth-related facial deformities.
Since 1991, Robinson has worked tirelessly in world humanitarian outreach efforts. These efforts culminated in her role as executive director of FTC for 10 years after it's inception in December 1993; she has since served as the organization's president.
Throughout the years, her efforts have been recognized by Cambridge Who's Who Executive, Professional, and Entrepreneurial Registry (2009), Great Women of the 21st Century (2006), International Biography Centre's International Health Professional of the Year (2004) and Two Thousand Outstanding Intellectuals on the 21st Century (2003).