Kathy Kleiner Rubin is best known for surviving an attack by Ted Bundy, but she did not seek the fame that came with it. Bundy assaulted her at her sorority house in 1978, leaving her fighting for her life. This was just one of many life-altering events in Kleiner Rubin’s life, including the loss of her father at a young age and battling childhood lupus which kept her isolated from other children.
Enrolling at Florida State University in Tallahassee, far from her Miami home, and moving into the Chi Omega sorority house gave Kleiner Rubin a taste of normalcy until the Bundy attack nearly took her life. Years later, she survived breast cancer. In her book, “A Light in the Dark: Surviving More than Ted Bundy” (Chicago Review Press), Kleiner Rubin talks about her determination not to let these events embitter her.
THE ATTACK
Kleiner Rubin described the night of the attack in 1978 when Bundy entered her room and assaulted her with a log, leaving her severely injured. She recounted how a bright light shining through the window startled Bundy and led to his eventual departure. Two of her sorority sisters were tragically killed in the attack.
Kleiner Rubin endured a painful recovery, both physically and emotionally, after the attack. She eventually found the strength to face Bundy in court and testify against him, staring him down and recognizing his true nature.
ROAD TO RECOVERY
Following the attack, Kleiner Rubin struggled with a range of emotions and found her own ways to cope and heal. Despite the lack of therapy in 1978, she devised her own healing mechanisms that helped her regain her strength and move forward.
Kleiner Rubin’s journey toward recovery involved facing her fears, finding strength, and eventually moving on to live a fulfilling life. She confronted her trauma head-on and refused to let it define her.
