Hidden Gems: Meet Maureen Basenberg of Safe Passage Children’s Advocacy Center

Today we’d like to introduce you to Maureen Basenberg.

Hi Maureen, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
How I got to where I am today can be traced back to 2002 when I was staff with the Arizona Governor’s Office, Division of Community Outreach. In that role I oversaw a variety of grant funds, including federal funds supporting the work of children’s advocacy centers throughout Arizona. I fell in love with the work done at advocacy centers; the focus on child victims and their healing and the focus on making a demanding job easier for the professionals that support child victims.

In 2007, I left the Arizona Governor’s Office to become director of Childhelp Children’s Advocacy Center in Phoenix, Arizona. During my nine years there I led the Childhelp team in a co-located center as well as a rural advocacy center program and a mobile advocacy center.

The opportunity to lead Safe Passage came in 2016. My husband and I had a goal of moving to Colorado. Our daughter had not started school yet, so the timing was ideal.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
When I started at Safe Passage in September 2016 the agency held a federal contract providing training and technical assistance to 14 western states. There were four employees on staff to fulfill the contract goals. Within my first month, Safe Passage was not awarded renewal of the contract after holding the contract for 15+ years. This was a genuine shock to all involved. Admittedly, leading this aspect of the work- with a big picture focus, was a big draw for me at that time in my career. Instead, that part of the role transitioned to letting those four staff go and closing out the federal contract (along with undergoing a required federal audit).

However, unbeknownst to me at the time, two wonderful things would happen. First, I became pregnant immediately after moving here! Had we kept the federal contract it would have been much harder to travel and be present for my son. Second, I firmly believe that because I was able to focus solely on the needs of Safe Passage and our community, I was able to shepherd the process of achieving the first fully co-located child advocacy center in the state of Colorado.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Safe Passage is the children’s advocacy center (CAC) for the 4th Judicial District. Primarily serving El Paso and Teller counties, the non-profit agency has served the community for thirty-one years. The purpose of a CAC is to convene all of the key agencies needed to respond when a child discloses they have been a victim of child abuse. In addition to convening the agencies, Safe Passage provides advocacy, forensic interviews and mental health to child abuse victims and caregivers.

In 2021, Safe Passage opened the first fully co-located child advocacy center in the state of Colorado. This means that located in the Safe Passage building are the following entities: Colorado Springs Police Department Crimes Against Children Unit, El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, El Paso County Department of Human Services, UCHealth Forensic Nursing team and Kidpower Colorado. Each of these physically works out of one location to coordinate and expediate the response to a child when they have experienced abuse. From opening the doors of the co-located space in 2021 to September 2025, Safe Passage has served 3,091 victims of child abuse.

There are few points of pride to share. We are proud of Colorado Springs for coming together to achieve the best practice model of co-location. Throughout the United States there are 900+ CAC’s. Of those, 20% have achieved a co-located model of service. We are also proud of our ability to provide forensic medical exams and mental health services at no cost to the families we serve.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
The best way people can support Safe Passage is by making a donation, either financial or in kind to support the dedicated advocacy, medical and mental health services provided to child abuse victims. More information can be found at www.safepassagecac.org

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.safepassagecac.org
• Instagram: safe_passage_cac
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SPCAC/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/safe-passage-childrens-advocacy-center/

Image Credits
Anslee Wolfe

Bryan Oller