Patrick Atkinson is a world-renowned humanitarian who has served as executive director of The GOD'S CHILD Project since founding the organization 1991. In addition to leading GOD'S CHILD, Patrick Atkinson serves as executive director of La Asociación Nuestros Ahijados and the Institute for Trafficked, Exploited & Missing Persons (ITEMP), the latter of which he established in 2001 as one of the first US-based contemporary anti-human-trafficking groups.
As part of his work with ITEMP, Mr. Atkinson conducts multiple presentations worldwide on human-trafficking awareness, detection, rescue, and prosecution. Bilingual in English and Spanish, he also acts as a consultant to various public-sector agencies. His achievements include organizing Central America’s first Human Trafficking Awareness Congress, which took place in 2005.
In recognition of his humanitarian and anti-human-trafficking efforts, he has earned awards and honors such as the Guatemalan Congressional Medal of Honor, knighthood from the Spanish Legion, commendations from the US Congress and Presidents Bush and Obama, and the Bismarck City Human Rights Commission's Humanitarian Award. His life and career was depicted in the biography The Dream Maker, written by Monica Hannan.
