BTGO History
Bridging the Gap is a long time-vision of Officer Mike Gallagher, Portland Police Bureau Sex Trafficking Unit. Over the years, Mike would spend countless hours tracking down resources for sexually exploited victims, and at the same time, had organizations offering to help, but no way to effectively and efficiently communicate with them. His idea was to fill the gap by communicating, in real time, the urgent needs to organizations that have the resources to help.
Leaders of the community helped Mike form BTGO in January 2014, operating as a group of volunteers. In June 2014, BTGO developed an intranet website to provide law enforcement and victim advocates with a communication portal to help meet victim needs. Through the website, information was distributed immediately to approved users, via a push notification system which allows direct communication with one another to meet the need. In May 2015, members of the BTGO team were awarded the City of Portland Police Bureau Commendation Medal for creating the Bridging the Gap website.
BTGO Future
BTGO’s main focus is to build a comprehensive, secure mobile app that will provide more benefits and advancement opportunities than the current website. The app will feature advanced technology with an integrated alert system, directory of organizations and members, victim resource guide, and private in app messaging for officers and advocates while on duty in the field. The BTGO app will serve both iOS and Android devices, and be downloadable from iTunes App Store and Google Play Store. The app will be developed to be scalable in the future with features for a mass centralized communication system for city, state and national agencies. BTGO will test the app in Portland, OR, where the Portland Police Bureau has already approved the app to be downloaded on officer phones.
The app will be a platform for other governmental or social service agencies to have a similar app built. Examples include Dept. of Human Services (immediate placement and resources for children); housing bureaus (for urgent housing or addressing the homeless needs); domestic violence centers, etc. Apps for these agencies could potentially save the government agencies millions of dollars in staff hours, resources, and crisis/emergency funds, while simultaneously filling immediate needs without the burden.
Other planned BTGO activities will include providing Trauma Informed Training to victim advocates, law enforcement, and other community groups
Bridging the Gap-Oregon is now in the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) organization, pending IRS approval.
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