Dr. Betty Kuffel of Whitefish was named the Whitefish Soroptimist Ruby Award winner for 2013 for living her life as an example for other women and girls.

The Soroptimist Ruby Award honors women who have worked to improve the lives of women and girls through their professional and/or volunteer work.

The first in her family to go to college, Kuffel worked as a registered nurse, then became a physician in her 40s. She was the oldest graduate in her class at the University of Washington Medical School.

While working as an emergency room doctor in Great Falls, she came in daily contact with local law enforcement personnel who were building a case against Nathaniel Bar-Jonah, an alleged cannibal who was convicted of kidnapping,  and aggravated and sexual assault.

Bar-Jonah was serving a 130-year prison sentence when he died in jail.

Kuffel talked with detectives and victims’ families, then interviewed Bar-Jonah face-to-face while he was in prison. The result of more than a decade of research is her book, “Eyes of a Pedophile.”

Driven to protect children from pedophiles, Kuffel travels the United States giving free presentations to help provide parents and guardians with the tools they need to identify pedophiles and protect their children from them.

Her medical skills and courage helped save her life and the life of her current husband several years ago after their plane crashed in snow-covered mountains. He was trapped inside the wreckage.

She suffered a compound fracture in her lower leg but was able to stabilize the break by wrapping it into a stirrup made of her headphones. Then she crawled through the inverted windshield of the plane to call 911.

Kuffel also donates her time writing a monthly health column for Montana Woman magazine and with her sister Beverly has formed Lipstick Logic LLP.

Their website is dedicated to helping women build self-esteem, improve decision-making and achieve personal goals.