Lisa Utzig Schafer is passionate about empowering people, and she teaches by example. At only 29 years old, the diminutive young woman has had life experiences that she often calls on in her job as outreach coordinator at South Lake Tahoe Women's Center.

She moved with her family from Santa Cruz to South Lake Tahoe in 1983, when she was 5. She attended local schools and graduated from South Tahoe High School in 1996.

Schafer enlisted in the Army in August 1996, at the age of 17, to get money for college and served four years with the 10th Mountain Division. She was stationed at Fort Drum in New York and was deployed to Bosnia for seven months. As an automated logistical specialist, her job was to order parts for vehicles, radios and weapons.

Schafer was the only female in her platoon, and she always felt torn between the camaraderie with her male friends and standing up for herself. At 5 feet and 107 pounds, there were times she was not taken seriously. Her entire experience in the military empowered her to be more assertive and heavily influenced what she does today in helping people to not become victims.

After her discharge in 2000, Schafer received an associate of arts degree in Spanish from Lake Tahoe Community College, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in art education from Humboldt State University in 2004. She chose art education because she wanted to teach and work with children. She returned to South Lake Tahoe after renewing her relationship with her high school sweetheart.

Shortly after coming back to Tahoe, a job as outreach coordinator opened up at the South Lake Tahoe Women's Center. It was a perfect fit for Schafer, because it included both teaching and working with children. She is the third member of her family to work at the Women's Center. Her mother, Tamara Utzig, was a court advocate from 1988 to 1999, and her sister, Sarah Utzig, who has been with the center for eight years, recently was promoted to advocate coordinator.

Schafer's responsibilities include providing child abuse and rape prevention education to public and private schools, including schools in Alpine County, and making presentations to community groups. She also is involved in outreach to the community, organizing and facilitating events for Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October and Child Abuse Prevention and Sexual Assault Awareness Month in April. Any group can contact the Women's Center and ask Schafer to make a presentation.

Schafer has special training to conduct forensic interviews with children who have been abused. She gets many disclosures from youths. Some tell her that this is the first time they have ever told anyone what happened to them.

She married Keegan Schafer on Nov. 15, 2007, in Tequesquitengo, Mexico. Keegan was born and raised at South Lake Tahoe and is the Zephyr fire crew supervisor with the Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District. They plan to have a family, but for now they enjoy their four-legged children, Kyah and Sunshyne.

Schafer is involved in arts and crafts and makes items from jewelry to cell-phone covers, which she sells online at www.squirrelsnest.etsy.com. She also enjoys the outdoors, including kayaking, hiking and gardening, and volunteers with the Elementary Arts Program at Bijou School.

Here is how she answered the Tribune's questions:

"I want to be remembered as someone who really made a difference and brought change, instead of just complaining about things. I want to be remembered for my passion and my compassion and for standing up for those without a voice."

"The American dream has seemed to disappear in Tahoe. It is continually difficult for locals to remain living in our community or sustaining their family and small business."

"Oh, that's hard. Who would want to take on this task? Honestly, it's easy to say someone you admire would make a good president, but it takes a very specific person to step up to the plate. I can't make that decision."

"Art and music. I can't imagine my life without music. I love the rush you get seeing performers sing and play live. I love the power that music has to take you back to a different time or place in your life, or even in history."

"I don't think I would change a thing. Every choice in my life has made me who I am today. I don't believe in regret. Even a mistake is a learning experience."

"I admire those who make a difference, who participate in social change. Those who stand up for what is right even if it is not the popular idea or movement of the time."

"Gandhi. His persistence, will power and devotion to a cause should be a symbol to everyone the influence that just one person can have. Gandhi practiced nonviolence and truth in all situations, and advocated that others do the same. Noncooperation and peaceful resistance were Gandhi's 'weapons' in the fight against injustice."

"Tori Amos. She has been one of my favorite singer/songwriters since I was 13 years old. Not only is she a remarkably talented woman, she is a survivor of sexual assault and national spokesperson and co-founder of RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network). RAINN has played an active role in urging Congress to fund programs relating to sexual assault, including getting legislation passed for sex offender registries in all states."

"I've always said that if I get to come back in another life, I would love to be a runner. Running has always been hard for me, and I've always been envious of those who have that endurance. While a gold medal would be self-satisfying, it would be incredible to win a Pulitzer Prize for making a major change in the world."

"I think our greed and our violence in general is embarrassing. The United States was ranked No. 97 out of 140 countries on the 2008 Global Peace Index Rankings. No. 1, Iceland, was ranked the most peaceful country. Iraq was No. 140. We ranked closer to Iraq. So much of our resources go to war and violence that our schools, children and families are suffering."