FORUM ON ADOPTION AND FOSTER CARE ADDED TO PHOTOGRAPHY SHOW OF LOCAL CHILDREN

SANTA BARBARA, California – October 3, 2007 – A forum addressing the needs and challenges of the adoptive and foster care system in Santa Barbara County has been added to opening night of a professional photography exhibit showing youngsters and adoptive families.

The Heart Gallery show is sponsored by Brooks Institute and Santa Barbara County Child Welfare Services at the Brooks Cota Street campus in downtown Santa Barbara.

The forum will be held on the show’s opening night, Thursday, November 1. The public is invited to both events at the Brooks Institute Cota Street Gallery, 27 E. Cota Street in downtown Santa Barbara. The opening celebration is from 5 – 8 pm. The forum will be from 6-7 pm in classroom C-1.

During the forum Anne Rodriguez of Child Welfare Services will outline the challenges faced in Santa Barbara County and will review how the public can help resolve the problem. Two local juvenile court judges will address the topic from their perspective.

The photography exhibit will show foster and adoptive youngsters in a presentation designed to help lift the stigma surrounding these children. Viewers can see the individuality and special beauty of each child and the people who care for them. Currently there are more than 900 children in Santa Barbara County’s foster care system. Many of the children pictured are among those available for adoption or fostering through Santa Barbara County Child and Welfare Services.

Brooks Institute alumni and faculty members donated their time to shoot and edit pictures of nearly 40 children and 12 families. Venues for the picture sessions included the Sunken Garden at the Santa Barbara Courthouse and Butterfly Beach.

The Heart Gallery title refers to photography shows of children from local communities held around the country. The project started in a New Mexico social services agency and has grown to include similar projects in 40 states. Many states have held multiple shows each year.

This first Heart Gallery display in Santa Barbara will have the pictures on display from October 8 through November 21. The November 1 opening coincides with the start of National Adoption Month and is part of the monthly “1st Thursday” series of open gallery tours in downtown Santa Barbara.

Much of Heart Gallery’s support is derived from donations and volunteer efforts. Printroom.com, an on-line photography lab, donated considerable funds to print the final gallery images. Other local organizations such as Acapella Restaurant will donate food for the event and Derroy, an international award winning guitarist and adoptee himself, will offer a special performance.

Additional information is available from the key project coordinators:

About Brooks Institute
Brooks Institute celebrates more than 60 years of educating students in the visual and media arts. With campuses in Santa Barbara and Ventura, California, the school offers Bachelor of Arts degrees in fields including Professional Photography, Visual Journalism, Film and Video Production and Graphic Design, and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Photography. Brooks’ graduates are visible nationally and internationally, working for distinguished organizations including National Geographic, Smithsonian, Los Angeles Times and other national media outlets, including Hallmark Publishing, Cousteau Society, HBO, Kodak and other industry leaders in the visual media arts fields. For more information about Brooks Institute and the school’s programs, visit www.brooks.edu, or call 805-966-3888.