Michelle Bearman-Wolnek is the executive director of Heart Gallery Alabama.
Q: Tell us briefly about your service.
A: Heart Gallery Alabama is a statewide nonprofit whose mission is to connect youth in foster care with a caring adult, whether through adoption, fostering or mentoring. We are located right here in Homewood, but we serve the entire state. We mainly work with teens, sibling groups or children with special needs, or any child that needs some extra help with recruitment. We also have our Heart Squad of volunteers, who make each child feel extra special by helping them celebrate their birthdays.
Q: How did you get involved with the organization?
A: In 2005, a group of volunteers learned about the Heart Gallery concept. An article came out in "Parade" magazine, and one of my friends read the article and called me. As a social worker and an adoptive parent, I was very passionate about the idea of helping older foster youth find permanency through adoption. I already knew how special adoption was, and, so, I was really fortunate enough to be in a position where I could volunteer my time and, basically, help start theHeart Gallery here. And then we went from three years from being a volunteer organization to becoming executive director, and now, almost 20 years later, being a statewide nonprofit organization and helping over 2000 children find permanency.
Q: What sets your service apart from others?
A: Heart Gallery Alabama is a unique organization because we work with professional photographers and videographers who help us share each child's story. We also are the only statewide organization that does this and we make sure that every child that's available for adoption has the best chance to meet their family. And then, we have a great group of volunteers that help make sure they feel loved and supported while they're waiting.
Q: What would your customers say they like about you?
A: If you define our customers as our teens that we work with, I think they say that, often, they thought they were forgotten, and now they realized how much they are loved. When a volunteer shows up with a basket of birthday goodies, or when they come to a back-to-school event, where they're allowed to go shop and pick out items just for their birthday and then when they're adopted and they realize, hey, they're not alone and that they have a whole team of people out here to support them.
Q: Give us your elevator pitch.
A: Heart Gallery Alabama is a statewide organization whose mission is to help children find permanency through adoption. They also help connect children with mentors while they wait. They work with volunteers who help children celebrate their birthdays and other special events. So they feel loved and supported. Heart Gallery is here to make sure every child in foster care has the best chance of becoming a successful adult.
Q: Anything else you would like to add?
A: Heart Gallery Alabama has a way for everybody to get involved. We all, as a community, should want our children to succeed. And while not everybody can adopt or foster or even mentor, everybody can go shopping for a child and or maybe make a donation to help support our volunteers who are shopping and bring gifts to kids. You could even— Your girl scout troop could get together and write letters or make birthday cards for our kids. So, there's something for everyone. I think it is our responsibility as a community to make sure that every child that lives here knows that there's somebody that cares about them and that we're going to do the best to help them have a successful future so that we can have a successful community.
