History of the Heart Gallery:

On March 9, 2001 the first annual "Heart Gallery" exhibit opened at the prestigious Gerald Peters Gallery in Sante Fe, New Mexico coordinated by Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD). An unprecedented crowd of 1,200 people gathered at the opening. The Heart Gallery has inspired heightened interest in foster care and adoption, and drawn national attention. Ellie Ortiz, supervisor of the foster and adoptive parent recruitment team, first thought of the idea. The combination of her need to photograph displaced children and Santa Fe's artistic nature was the perfect setting for this type of creation.  The exhibit gave CYFD and the children a chance to reach out to prospective adoptive parents, and afforded the community a singularly beautiful way to learn about foster care and adoption.