World’s Fair Park Hosts Exhibit of Adoptable Children in Tennessee Produced by Adoptive Parents

The state of Tennessee’s 2nd Annual Adoption Bike Tour ends today with a stirring exhibit of more than 150 images of children in foster care waiting to be adopted. The exhibit entitled the Heart Gallery Tennessee is the creation of adoptive parents Rene Gunn and Jim Cash. One parent adopted domestically, the other adopted a child from outside the United States. Though different, both adoptive parents had one thing in common; they wanted to make a difference in the life of children impacted by the foster care system through their non-profit organization Gift for a Child.

“Jim and I have worked together for several years at the same company. As coworkers, we talked a lot about my son’s adoption. Jim and his wife eventually adopted a son too. We found that we shared a similar passion to help children in need, said Rene Gunn, founding executive director of Gift for a Child, Inc. One discussion led to another and we decided to form a volunteer-based organization focused on utilizing the gifts and talents of others to help children in need of forever families.”

Gift for a Child manages Heart Gallery programs in a number of Southeast states that have resulted in adoptions for children waiting in foster care. The Heart Gallery Southeast is a nationally recognized photographic exhibit created by Gift for a Child, Inc. that includes professionally produced photographs of children waiting to be adopted. Many of the children in the Heart Gallery are teens, minority, special needs and sibling groups. These children typically wait many years before being adopted.

Gift for a Child’s Tennessee Heart Gallery project launched earlier this week in Memphis and Nashville. The organization lined up 50 photographers to capture candid images of more than 150 children. “Thanks to the overwhelming support of the professional community, it took less than a month to line up photographers, select images and get them printed in time for this week’s Adoption Bike Tour,” Gunn said. The organization’s Heart Gallery Georgia exhibit launched in May and resulted in 10 of the 50 children getting adopted.

The Heart Gallery Tennessee exhibit is on display in Knoxville today at the World’s Fair Park. Visitors will visually meet each child as they glance at each symbolic snapshot. The Heart Gallery Tennessee exhibit continues its multi-city tour in 2007.

About Gift for a Child, Inc.
Gift for a Child Inc. is a non-profit organization focused on raising awareness and finding permanent homes and a brighter future for children in the foster care system. The organization works with child welfare agencies, businesses, schools and churches to bring the community closer to the reality that there are thousands of children who need help finding a family they can call their own.

About The Heart Gallery Southeast Program
The Heart Gallery Southeast Program is an adoption recruitment program of Gift for a Child Inc. designed to raise awareness and educate the communities in Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina and Tennessee concerning the urgent need for foster and adoptive families in the Southeast. Gift for a Child operates Heart Gallery Tennessee, Heart Gallery Georgia, Heart Gallery Mississippi and Heart Gallery Charlotte.
About the Heart Gallery Tennessee Photographers
The following professional photographers, listed in alphabetical order, are donating their time and energy to advance the cause and visibility of foster children in Tennessee.

Neal Ammons, Mark Bocci, Jerry Borwick, Charlie Brooks, Dean Carothers, Owen Cobb, Jason Connel, Donna Farnsworth, Jean Phillipe Cypress, Mike Fesmire, Jarrett Gaza, Norm Gilbert, Beth Gwinn, Caitlin Harris, Chris Hollo, Melody Hood, Hal Jaffee, Michelle Winter Johnson, Eddie Lambert, Sheilah Lansky, Scott Lee, Jon Morgan, Stephanie Mullins, Bob Patterson, Christine Patterson, Liz Power, Terry Power, Richard Ramsey, Sheri Reno, Alexis Robbins, Billy Ross, Bob Schatz, Nola Swartz, Jan Shivley, Diana Simpson, Jason Simpson, Clark Thomas, Tom Stanford, Wade Tipton, Don Tritt, Beth Valentine, Christine Winter.

For more information on how you can help or donate to Gift for a Child/Heart Gallery Tennessee, visit www.giftforachild.org or email Elaine Cash at ecash@giftforachild.org.

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