Growing a New Heart founder honored for innovation in preventing sexual violence

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Oct 10, 2023, 10:15 ET

WARE, Mass., Oct. 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Growing a New Heart founder and principal JAC Patrissi was honored by The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) and the Association for the Treatment and Prevention of Sexual Abuse (ATSA). Partrissi received the 2023 Gail-Burns Smith Award at a ceremony held during the Association for the Treatment and Prevention of Sexual Abuse Conference in Aurora, Colorado, on September 27, 2023. In August, Patrissi was presented the same award at the Equity in Action 2023 National Sexual Assault Conference in San Francisco, California.

Patrissi, who also co-founded A Call For Change—the nation's first confidential helpline dedicated to fostering change for people using the tools of dominance and abuse in their intimate partnerships—has spent more than 30 years educating and advocating for systemic change on behalf of victims of abuse and violence. Patrissi acknowledged the honor, saying her "heart is filled with the vision of our field co-creating ways of living in community that move us beyond containment and punishment and center us in compassionate accountability."

Presented jointly by ATSA and NSVRC, the award is named in honor of Gail Burns-Smith, one of the first advocates to recognize and speak publicly about the importance of collaboration between victim advocates and those working in the area of sex offender management to effectively prevent child sexual abuse.

A joint statement from the NSVRC and ATSA noted Patrissi's longstanding commitment to healing the world through "survivor-centric services and educational resources that make her more than worthy of the recognition that this award brings."

You can read more about the Gail-Burns Smith Award, including a list of past winners, on the NSVRC website.

About Growing a New Heart
Growing a New Heart is a collective of like-minded professionals in the fields of social justice advocacy, sexual and domestic violence, addictions, art, communications, dispute resolution, community building and self healing. The organization facilitates relationships and communications in families, workplaces and communities through training, retreats, writing, storytelling, traditional indigenous healing practices, and the arts. You can learn more about Growing a New Heart by visiting growinganewheart.org.

Media Contact: Michael Rice ([email protected])

SOURCE Growing a New Heart