Carolyn Robinson remembers the moment everything changed. She and her husband Jim had become friends with Toni and Ken Clark through a network of families who had adopted children from Russia. When Toni shared what she was learning about child exploitation in South Carolina, especially in Greenville, the numbers stopped Carolyn cold.

"I had no idea how big the problem was right here in the Upstate," Carolyn says. "You hear about these things and assume it's happening somewhere else. It's not, it’s happening in our backyard."

That realization led the Robinsons to become longtime supporters of Defenders For Children, the nonprofit Toni Clark founded to bring the community together to help equip law enforcement with Electronic Detection K9s. These specially trained dogs help investigators locate hidden phones, hard drives, and storage devices that offenders use to hide evidence in child exploitation cases, trafficking, and other crimes against children. Carolyn joined the board in 2022 and has been deeply involved ever since. 

For Carolyn, board membership is not a title on a letterhead. She networks to help expand funding and operations, attends public events to raise awareness, and travels to training sessions where K9 units and officers from across the country learn about the program. She has even traveled to other states to help open new locations and build support networks.

"Once you understand what these K9’s can do and what's at stake, you can't look away," Carolyn says. "A single memory card the size of your fingernail can hold millions of images and videos, which leads to solid evidence, and when located, can help save a child. That's worth showing up for.” 

International Plastics, the family business where Carolyn serves as CFO, sponsored an Electronic Detection K9 named Scooby, now working with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office. The K9 was named after Carolyn's brother, whose nickname is Scooby, and it fits a dog whose job is to sniff out clues. 

Since July 2024, K-9 Scooby, who has proven to be an invaluable investigative asset. K-9 Scooby has been deployed on over 60 search warrants, locating over 130 devices, in support of ICAC, digital forensics, and technology-facilitated crime investigations. These deployments have consistently resulted in the successful location of concealed electronic evidence critical to criminal prosecutions. All searches lead to arrest.

The statistics are sobering.   Greenville is the highest in South Carolina,  Trafficking and CSAM Cyber tips, and extremely high in hands-on sexual abuse cases with the children’s crime unit. 

Cyber tips - child exploitation, child abuse material (CSAM), or trafficking, with reports analyzed and referred to law enforcement. It serves as a critical, often sole, avenue for identifying victims and traffickers. 

In 2024, State Wide - South Carolina (ICAC) Internet Crimes Against Children received 11,500 Cyber tips related to child exploitation. 

In 2025, that number doubled to 23,000 Cyber tips.

In 2025, Greenville County received 487 Cyber tips cases, resulting in many arrests with the help of K9 Scooby.

The county has led the state in human trafficking investigations for two consecutive years, with 32 investigations in 2024 and 35 in 2025. In 2025 alone, 234 of the 323 identified trafficking victims statewide were children.

Defenders For Children has placed 23 Electronic Detection K9s with law enforcement agencies nationwide, including three in the Upstate and five others across South Carolina. Collectively, all 23 Electronic Detection K9s have located over 3,800 electronic devices missed by law enforcement during their searches, averaging 2 to 3 devices per search. 

 The first K9 placed with Greenville County in 2018 was named Queue.  K9 Queue assisted in 83 search warrants and helped locate 110 electronic devices before retiring in 2024. Many of the searches lead to child victims. As the organization often says, Predators don't lose evidence. They hide what they don’t want found. 

The Robinsons built their home in Thornblade in 2019 after moving from the Kingsbridge neighborhood. Carolyn has lived in Greenville her whole life and joined her family's business, International Plastics, early in her career. Jim spent his career in accounting software sales and consulting before retiring. These days, he's more likely to be found on the golf course.

They have been married for 36 years and raised two children here. Their son Will recently married Grace Allen, and readers may remember the couple held their reception at Thornblade, featured in our last edition. Their daughter Elena is working and out on her own.

The Robinsons are active members of Brushy Creek Baptist Church and support other ministries and charities in the region. But their work with Defenders For Children holds a special place.

"You can write a check and feel good about it," Carolyn says. "But when you see these dogs work, when you meet the investigators, when you understand what they're up against, you want to do more”.

Defenders For Children is a grassroots nonprofit that equips law enforcement with Electronic Detection K9s trained to find hidden electronic devices in child exploitation investigations. These dogs can locate phones, hard drives, USB drives, microSD cards, and hidden cameras that offenders often conceal to avoid prosecution. In these cases, a single device can hold critical evidence that leads to convictions and helps identify victims.

Defenders For Children is recognized by the Secretary of State with the “Angel Award” for our impactful programs and for how we manage donors' funds. 

Visit www.defendersforchildren.org or contact founder Toni Clark at DefendersForChildren@gmail.com.   Make a donation.