GIFFORDS awards Hartford’s COMPASS Youth Collaborative with Lifesaving Service Award

HARTFORD, Conn. — Today, GIFFORDS Center for Violence Intervention announced that COMPASS Youth Collaborative, based in Hartford, Connecticut, is the 2026 recipient of its Lifesaving Service Award. The award was announced during GIFFORDS Center for Violence Intervention’s annual conference. 

For more than three decades, COMPASS Youth Collaborative has been a driving force for violence prevention in Connecticut, empowering young people, strengthening families and building safer communities through evidence-informed, community-centered programs. Through their relentless approach to relationship building, cognitive behavioral approach, crisis intervention and prevention, COMPASS Youth Collaborative creates lasting pathways to safety, opportunity, and hope.

“Earlier this year I had the opportunity to visit COMPASS Youth Collaborative’s space in Hartford and see firsthand the impactful work they do everyday. COMPASS Youth Collaborative’s programming and initiatives has created real change in Connecticut and saved lives. Their work sets the stage for what success looks like in the community violence intervention space. We are proud to honor them with the 2026 Lifesaving Service Award,” said former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. 

“We are deeply honored to receive the 2026 Lifesaving Service Award. This recognition belongs to the courageous young people we serve, the dedicated staff who walk beside them every day, and the partners who believe that every life has value. At COMPASS Youth Collaborative, we know that when communities invest in relationships, healing, and opportunity, young people don’t just survive—they lead, thrive, and transform the future of our neighborhoods. We are grateful to GIFFORDS for elevating the life-saving impact of community violence intervention across our nation,” said Jacquelyn Santiago Nazario, Chief Executive Officer, COMPASS Youth Collaborative.