Last Thursday, November 5th, Officer Malatesta was among
those recognized as Heroes with Heart
The annual Heroes with Heart Dinner is a gala event attended
by over 400 elected officials, public safety officials, hospital executives,
business leaders and volunteers.
The event recognizes law enforcement officers, firefighters
and hospital personnel who went above the call of duty throughout the year to
provide compassionate support to members of the public in crisis. Recipients of
the Heroes with Heart Award are unsung heroes who, at this event, are given the
public recognition they deserve.
Officer Malatesta was nominated by a TIP responder for
showing extraordinary compassion to a crime victim at a call for service.
“On 11/17/14 I was
called by Officer Brent Malatesta of the Los Alamitos Police Department to help
a woman who had asked to speak to Officer Malatesta because he had responded to
her residential burglary a few days earlier. I was very impressed with Officer
Malatesta’s kindness. I could see that his validation of the victim’s crime
experience and his willingness to listen to her made all the difference in her
ability to begin coping with her victimization.”
— TIP Volunteer Renee Lutz
TIP of Orange County is a chapter of the Trauma Intervention
Programs, Inc. (TIP), a national non-profit organization founded in 1985. TIP
has 15 affiliates serving over 250 cities across the nation. In each Affiliate, citizen volunteers respond
to traumatic incidents at the request of Police, Fire and Hospital personnel to
support those who are emotionally traumatized.
Congratulations to Officer Malatesta and all the honorees.