Heart Gallery in Summit County

Loving foster, adoptive families sought; smiling faces need new homes.
Summit Co. Children Services creates photo exhibits of kids to raise awareness.
Hagelberg, Kymberli. Akron Beacon Journal, April 16, 2007, pg. A1.

In the photos, the boys and girls smile brightly and look like any other you would see with friends on a school playground or at the mall.

In fact, they are just like other children -- except the 22 pictures are just a fraction of the 100 or so youngsters in the custody of Summit County Children Services who are in search of a permanent home.The photos are part of Heart Gallery, an exhibit to raise awareness of the need for adoptive and foster parents, which opened Thursday at the Akron-Summit County Library downtown.

The idea for the Heart Gallery project began six years ago in Santa Fe, N.M. Exhibits can now be found in more than 60 locations in 45 states.

Pictures of the Summit County children were taken by volunteers. The images come with a first name and a paragraph of background. The children, ages 3 to 17, are in the permanent custody of the agency -- which means there is no chance they will return to their birth parents. The children in the display range from normal to mild to severe physical and mental disabilities. At least two in the group will probably require a lifetime of medical care.

Three-year-old Kaleb, a dimpled redhead with a light in his eyes, suffers from the effects of shaken baby syndrome and cannot sit on his own.

David, 17, who has Down syndrome, has spent most of his life in custodial care. He has limited verbal ability, but is able to provide for his own hygiene, self-care and is independent enough to help out around the house and at school. He is up for adoption now because his foster mother is 85 and wants to be assured of his future.

"These are adorable children we love and would love to see adopted," said Bethany Lee-Lane, the county's foster and adoption recruiter.

"David's foster mother takes great care of him, and we will keep him in custody until he is 21. At that time, he would probably go into a group home if he's not adopted.

"We get a lot of calls about Kaleb when people see that face, but when we tell them he might never walk, they lose interest," Lee-Lane said.

She said there are people who may not find his needs challenging.

"Maybe someone like that will see the pictures," she said. "We can't limit others based on what we believe we can or cannot do."

And sometimes children like Amber, Jordan and Devon, who do not have major issues, get lost in the background.

"The common person doesn't see the faces and personalities of these kids," Lee-Lane said. "Even though you see them at school with your own children or at church every Sunday with their foster parents doesn't mean that they don't need a permanent home."

Children who are adopted from foster care receive financial and medical assistance from the agency until they turn 18 or 21, depending on the individual situation. Court fees are minimal and reimbursable, Lee-Lane said.

Those interested in fostering or adopting a child must undergo a home study, fingerprinting, a criminal background check and take 30 hours of training. A history of domestic violence and some other violent crimes will exclude an applicant, but other felonies and misdemeanors do not.

For information on becoming an adoptive or foster parent, call Lee-Lane at 330-996-1054. Call 330-379-1990 to obtain an information packet from Summit County Children Services.

The Heart Gallery exhibit will remain through April 27 at the main library, 60 S. High St. Additional displays can be seen April 23 to May 4 at Akron Children's Hospital, Third Floor, One Perkins Square, and May 7 to June 15 at Chapel Hill Mall, 2000 Brittain Road.