Patrick Rutikanga is passionate about working with at-risk children. His passion comes from the legacy and family history of rescuing orphans and abandoned children in Rwanda. He is transforming an orphanage into a trauma-informed community center for vulnerable children and their families in Kigali. His work is based on providing trauma-informed services through afterschool programs and early childhood programs that are very culturally appropriate to the Rwandan and African community.
He intends not only to write about an orphanage (Gisimba Memorial Center) in Kigali that was able to rescue 405 lives during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, but also to engage with the audience about how relationships and felt safety environment can bring healing to those affected by traumatic experiences.
Patrick holds a BA in social work and administration from Mount Kenya University. He also attended an intensive English program related to human rights activism at Texas Christian University. After the program, he was admitted to TCU’s Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development through an MA program in developmental trauma. He is a practitioner of a therapeutic model developed there, called Trust Based Relational Intervention, that trains caregivers to provide effective support and treatment for at risk-children. Trust-Based Relational Intervention has been applied in orphanages, courts, residential treatment facilities, group homes, foster and adoptive homes.
When Patrick is out of the office, he likes to socialize with people and play basketball with children and friends.
