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New
Developments
NEW NUMBER-
Robert Wilson with www.Etollfree.net
has donated a completely
automated revolutionary
phone system. 866-787-adopt
NEW
BROCHURE- Peter@qualityprintingcheap.com
is a big supporter by giving
us 10,000 brochures at
cost.
NEW PSA- Chris
at www.glow.tv
has really outdone himself
with the creation of a more
than affordable PSA (view
it here) that can be
used anywhere in the nation
with a slight tag
modification.
NEW COMMITTEE-
HG has added a
traveling tour committee
consisting of The Arrow
Project, The Bair Foundation
and Buckner Children
& Family Services. These
organizations have
volunteered to host a
monthly meeting as well as
take the portraits to
various civic and community
functions to increase the
exposure and the chances for
adoption of these children. This
committee was created to
better support the DFPS and
be available at least once a
month to answer questions
and keep the kids in the
public eye. Visit www.EastTexasHeartGallery.com
to see our upcoming events.
NEW SCHEDULE- We
are also now having
quarterly photoshoots for
the kids to increase focus,
details and personalization.
NEW WEBSITE
& COLLABORATION-
Bought TexasHeartGalery.com
to support all Heart Gallery
effort and tie us together.
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LOBBYING
FOR THE CHILDREN!
Last Month in Austin:
Dawn Donovan testified
before the Senate Health
& Human Services
Committee in February and
Denice Grugle gave invited
testimony to the House
Health & Human
Services Committee last
month as well. Both times
they asked for additional
Department of Family &
Protective Services
workers because there are
not enough to get the job
done. There are not enough
resources or enough
workers to adequately care
for the children of the
State much less look out
for their best interest.
Go to www.EastTexasHeartGallery.com
to find and write your
state representative.
Donations-* We will
raise $10,000 by the end
of April to continue at
this pace. We have
written some grants and
are waiting for a reply.
We will hire a full time
director and have enough
money to pay them for
three months while they
get their feet
wet, learn the
process and write
grants. Ideas, leads or
even $20 will help us
achieve our goal. Our
time is so limited that
we have been finding
forever families for
these kids instead of
looking for funds. We
will not survive without
money and we need you
help NOW!.
* Easy Money: 30 -
$10 Wal-Mart gift cards
right now and we average
using 10 gift cards a
month. We give each
child a disk and a gift
card so that they can
make an album or print a
large photo for a
frame.
Successes at finding
funds & combining
them with promotions: We
have been asked to
create a 16-page full
color Heart Gallery book
that highlights our
hardest of the
hard-to-place kids.
There will be 5,000
printed next month and
another 5,000 printed
with updates in August.
The DFPS and committees
are paying for this book
to be created and
printed. DFPS acquired a
Federal HHS grant to do
this project. Heart
Gallery has also been
given a small travel
budget and some general
financial assistance
through this same grant
in promoting events
throughout the year.
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Details:
April
is Child
Abuse
Prevention
Month
May is
Foster
Care
Awareness
month -
see our
website
soon for
those
dates.
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Austin |
East
Texas
Heart
Gallery
is
going
to
Austin
with
Heart
Galleries
from
across
the
state
from
March
26th
to
April
3rd
in
North
Central
Gallery.
On
the
3rd
there
will
be a
ceremony
in
the
Legislative
Conference
Center
from
2-3:30
with
refreshments
and
entertainment
(Brin
Beavers
will
perform
the
song
she
wrote
for
the
Heart
Gallery.
Brin
is
from
Emory.)
This
will
be
the
first
annual
Texas
Heart
Gallery
Tour. |
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Texarkana |
The
Texarkana
AR
event
will
be
April
12
at
the
4
states
fairgrounds.
11-2
and
4-6. |
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Tyler |
April
26th
&
27
at
Green
Acres
Baptist |
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Quitman |
April
27th
Wood
County
Child
Welfare
Board
and
many
partners
will
host
the
7th
annual?
Candle
Light
Ceremony
at
Hogg
Park
in
Quitman
from
6-7.
Heart
Gallery
will
be
set
up
while
Brin
Beavers
performs
the
Heart
Gallery
song
and
there
will
be
many
inspirational,
heart
felt
speakers
from
East
Texas. |
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Palestine |
CASA
5k
run
in
Palestine
on
June
16
the
race
starts
at 6
am. |
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Thank
God
for Tim,
Shea,
Ellie,
Daylon,
Dawn
&
Mason.
I
could
not
do
any
of
this
without
you
all. |
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1)
Front
Page
Webmaster
will
be
used
to
help
finish
our
site.
2)
Graphics
work
to
create
some
graphics
and
some
ads
to
use
as
PSA's
(Someone
could
always
donate
$
for
us
to
spend
to
hire
an
agency.)
(Spanish
PSA
will
be
used
also.)
3)
Data
entry
&
letter
writing
4)
Grant
Writer
5)
Tour
Committee
volunteers
6)
Heart
Gallery
Book
and
brochure
distributors
In
The
Perfect
World:
We will
have
an advertising
agency
to
write
our
PSA's
and
send
them
to
the
media.
We will
have
a
web
company
to
handle
our
website
development.
If
you
will
help
us
with
these
things
please
call
now.
Special
Thanks
to
our
board,
DFPS,
the
new
committees,
the
volunteers
and
donors. We
welcome
Lori
Sutton-White
as
our
new
DFPS
intensive
adoption
liaison,
Janye
Balentine
as
our
new
DFPS
community
development
coordinator,
Shari
Pullium,
DFPS-
partner
in
Heart
Gallery
efforts.
Oopsadaisy
photographer
&
board
member,
Donna
Wagner,
has
been
doing
double-duty
by
hosting
our
monthly
photoshoots.
Successes
Families
have
been
selected
for
over
50%
of
the
children
we
have
represented.
Take
Devin
for
instance,
before
the
Heart
Gallery
a
kid
like
Devin
would
have
aged-out
at
18
and
lived
off
social
services
available
for
a
child.
Although
already
17,
Devin
was
strong
and
aggressively
wanted
a
family.
Today
he
is
living
in
the
perfect,
loving
supportive
home.
The
Heart
Gallery
took
his
picture
&
wrote
his
story
and
a
family
took
him
home.
Many
of
these
children
do
not
make
it
to
18
before
they
start
doing
petty
crimes
and
acting
out
so
badly
that
they
are
no
longer
adoptable.
They
are
afraid
of
becoming
too
close
and
getting
hurt
again
so
they
run
their
chances
of families
away.
Heart
Gallery
is
stepping
in
sooner
and
saving
these
kids
earlier
by
increasing
the
number
of
inquiries
about
them
so
much
that
the
DFPS
has
to
assign
an
adoption
specialist
to
the
Heart
Gallery.
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When left un-adopted, without structure, love or support these children often become
incarcerated
or end up living a life of depression depending on the state and federal systems for support, only to repeat the cycle when they become pregnant and on drugs. Stop the cycle.
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The portraits and sketches of the children were created by professionals donating their time, and show the kids in a range of emotions - some laughing, some with stony stares. Some who see the pictures may be unable to turn away without tears in their eyes. There is a family for every child and this program achieves permanence for “hard-to-place” children.
There are more than 130,000 children available for adoption right now. 19,000 children “age-out” of the system without every finding a forever family.
More than 1,300 children aged
out in Texas last year. These hard-to-place children are over 8 or in a minority or sibling group.
“Hundred’s of millions of dollars continue to be spent on foster care, only to have what positive influence it might have been erode, as we allow thousand’s of youth to “age-out” without the family connections, help and guidance they need to get the rest of the way to adulthood… these children enter adulthood without support, knowledge, relationships or opportunities they need to succeed as adults.” The Annie Casey Foundation
Snail
Mail: 222
CR 3873Mineola,
TX 75773
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