Tag Archive for: Gary Quinn

Roger Callahan Meets TFT’s African Leaders and Rwandan TFT Trainers

Left to right: Prosper ISHIMWE, Celestin MITABU, Roger Callahan, Deacon Augustin NZABONIMANA, Fr. Jean Marie VIANEY

by Joanne Callahan, MBA, President, ATFT Foundation

During the month of September 2011, four of our top Rwandan practitioners, and leaders of our ATFT Foundation’s sister charitable organization, IZERE Center, and director of the Rwandan Orphans Project, attended training to become trainers and further spread TFT in Africa. This ATFT Foundation project took place with the help of the St. Stephens Catholic Diocese, five Hawaiian agencies, and the hard work and dedication of many Hawaiians.

ATFT Foundation’s on-going Rwandan team, Suzanne Connolly, Caroline Sakai, and Gary Quinn supported their training and needs while in Hawaii. Suzanne was team leader on the deployments to Rwanda and support for the planning and facilitation of this year’s project. Caroline was team leader for this project in Hawaii. Her organization of everything was masterful. Gary provided much love, care, transportation and fun for our guests.

Roger and I had the wonderful opportunity to observe the Rwandans at work with the TFT trained staff of the Hale Na’au Pono, Waianae Coast Mental Health Services. We were impressed with their skill and level of supervision as well as the skill, professionalism and care of the staff at Hale Na’au Pono.

Roger at Hale Na’au Pono. Left to Right: Carole, Ho’oipo DeCambra, Roger Callahan, Jacquirie, Po’ka, with a beautiful quilt made by the Rwandan Orphans as a back drop.

During our time in Hawaii, we were deeply touched by the stories shared with us from the Hawaiian volunteers and the discussions with the four Rwandans. Fr. Jean Marie VIANEY, Deacon Augustin NZABONIMANA, and Prosper ISHIMWE were originally trained at the IZERE Center in 2009/2010. Fr. JMV and Deacon Augustin are directors of the center and have helped over 3000 people since learning TFT.

Celestin MITABU is the Director of the Rwandan Orphan Project, which was our first mission to Rwanda, with Paul Oas to help the Kigali street children. It was here that Suzanne Connolly and Dottie Webster started the Rwandan Quilting Project as a means of income for the orphans. The study, done in 2006-2007 was published last year.

It is so rewarding to see how these hard working and dedicated young men have shared TFT with thousands of traumatized people in both Kigali and Byumba. We are so inspired to hear their hopes and dreams of healing their country and people. The ATFT Foundation is dedicated to a long collaboration with them, helping many.

We thank all the people who have donated funds, time and services to allow the training of our Rwandan TFT practitioners. They have become highly skilled trainers, sharing the healing power of TFT with those in need in Hawaii, and those traumatized in their own county and neighboring African nations.

Tapping Away The Pain From Haiti To Rwanda

haiti trauma relief
Joanne Callahan, President, ATFT Foundation

There are currently two TFT healing and training teams, teaching local community leaders how to help their neighbors, families and colleagues how to tap away the pain of loss, trauma, grief, despair and fear.

ATFT UK Foundation’s board members, Dr. Howard and Phyll Robson, have joined a healthcare team led by Dr. Carolle Jean-Murat, California, providing community outreach for many in La Vallee, Haiti. Howard and Phyll are treating many and more importantly, are teaching a group of 32 leaders, clergy, teachers and professionals in TFT trauma relief. They will leave behind a TFT skilled and caring group to continue helping others.

They will soon be traveling to outlying areas with their new TFT trainees to support them as they begin to help the many children and refugees from the devastated Port Au Prince area.

This model of teaching the local people to carry on with the healing tools of TFT has proven to be very successful in Uganda and Rwanda and we expect similar results in Haiti.

The ATFT (USA) Foundation’s trauma relief team, Suzanne Connolly, Caroline Sakai, Gary Quinn and Cyndi Quinn, have also just begun training a new group at the TFT algorithm level, and are scheduled to begin a diagnostic level training for those trained in previous years. They will also begin two follow-up studies to the work done in Kigali and Byumba in 2008 and 2009.

Haiti TFT helpsThey said they were welcomed with smiling and appreciative faces, friends from their previous trips, all telling stories of how TFT has helped their community over the last year.

Rwanda has been an excellent example of how these missions can grow to serve an entire region. The IZERE Center (Reconciliation and Peace) in Byumba, Northern Rwanda has now been successfully helping the people of their region with TFT trained therapists for a full year.

Please help us carry on this much needed work. If you wish to help or contribute with further missions to Haiti or Rwanda, please click this link to the ATFT Foundation.