Keshonna 8 Years Old KIERA 6 YEARS OLD
SWEET SISTERS Love Each Other
Hide and Seek Cheetos PIZZA ROLLS LOVE COLORING “NEAT” Spiderman REESE PUFFS Want to be a Police Officer or Teacher
Photography by Sarah Spivey and Z. Michael Smith
Art that Captures the Heart “Home is where the heart is. Having lived in the Golden Isles for almost a decade, my heart is very much home. One of my favorite parts of our community is the benevolent and compassionate nature of our neighbors who love to support worthy, grassroots (in our case, marsh grassroots) efforts.” – Ally Christianson Co-Founder of Heart Gallery of Georgia 46
ELEGANT ISLAND LIVING
I
t was seeing that community benevolence that led Ally Christianson and Amy Housten to establish the Georgia arm of Heart Gallery of America, a national organization of more than 120 galleries with a single mission: to facilitate and utilize the power of photography to capture the individuality and dignity of children living in foster care in order to advocate for their permanency, raise public awareness about their needs, and obtain support to help meet those needs. She says, “Having founded Heart Gallery of Georgia in 2014, I can truly attest to the difference the love and support of our community has made. For us at Heart Gallery of
Georgia, the number of children in our state system awaiting adoption (over 350) simply broke us to the point that we began to take action, searching for ways to bring precious hearts home for good.” In order for a child to be placed in the Heart Gallery, they must be nominated by the state of Georgia and deemed most in need of the services provided. These are often children who have waited an average of five years to be adopted, have special needs, or are part of large sibling groups. Once nominated, Heart Gallery seeks sponsorships for each child. The funds are utilized to cover a special “Day of Hope” experience for each child. (story continues on page 50)
