LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A outstanding girl within the Las Vegas valley is reworking lives and reshaping the group’s method to ending the epidemic of home and sexual violence.
Liz Ortenberger CEO of Safenest has led the group for the previous eight years, taking up the difficult difficulty of home violence.
“The fluidity of the problem makes it very hard to solve; so knowing that helps me say OK. Who can I bring to the table, where can we find common ground, what can we push forward,” Ortenberger stated.
She joined Safenest with a deep ardour for its mission and efficiently grew its funds from $3 million to $10 million. Since 2019, Liz has integrated Camp Hope into Safenest’s packages, with practically 500 youth participating.
Ortenberger additionally led the event of a response program in partnership with Metro, permitting advocates to accompany cops to home violence scenes.
“Only 4 percent of women who are murdered, in a domestic violence situation will reach out to a crisis hotline like the one Safenest provides,” Ortenberger stated. “But before that outcome 86 percent, however, will intersect with police.”
Ortenberger may be very happy with the accomplishments that occurred throughout the 2023 legislative session, significantly the passage of a strangulation invoice.
“Victims of domestic violence, who have been strangled, as part of a violence portfolio can get a free exam,” Ortenberger stated. “We know strangulation plays such a correlated role in lethality for that survivor, but also in cop killers and mass shooters. Being able to get these offenders behind bars and with a felony offense, to me was like yes, we are moving the needle.”
Practically a yr in the past, Ortenberger was identified with leukemia and underwent a transplant in October. She didn’t take a lot time to relaxation; she accomplished her PhD whereas present process chemotherapy, turning her hospital room right into a productive workspace.
“I have to give a shout-out to the sixth floor at Summerlin Hospital. They let me bring in an extra table, set up a desk, and put a note up that I was having meetings,” Ortenberger stated. “I was able to continue to work.”
Ortenberger secured $9 million in funding from state lawmakers to determine One Protected Place, a campus designed to centralize and broaden companies for survivors of home violence, sexual violence, and trafficking. Set to open in October, will probably be the one campus of its type within the U.S.
Ortenberger embodies hope, energy, and dedication making her a outstanding girl.
