About Joshua-

What a great kid.

You can't tell (Thanks Marc) but Joshua has a broken arm. He was playing football at school and one of the other kids ran flush into his outstretched fist. He wore the cast with pride. His initial meeting with us was warm. He smiled and opened up right away. He knew he was there to find his "forever family" but he was not nervous at all. He talked to us about his desires very specifically.

He wants an active family who have some land in the country. He wants to work on the land. He wants horses and cows. He wants to play sports and ride 4-wheelers. He is a real "boys-boy". If you are looking for a "son", I think he may be it!

He spoke about the gospel songs at the church camp he attended last summer and the games they played there. He is proud of his faith and hopes he will be able to attend church.

Denice

Success Story:

Jimmy had already raised his daughters and sent them to college when he and his wife decided to give back to the community. They went through all of the training to be adoptive parents and referred to the East Texas Heart Gallery to see the most recent children. Jimmy's family was unique in that they were willing and able to adopt teenage boys. Their hope is to adopt three around the same age so that they can all learn from each other and grow together.

"We were going back & forth with the state about what would be the right child for our family. I found a boy on the East Texas Heart Gallery website that I thought looked like a nice young man. I thought he looked like he would fit into our family." Jimmy was sure after talking to the social worker that they were discussing a different child. She spoke of a child with a tormented past that had big issues.

The child Jimmy noticed showed potential and looked like an athletic and out-going. This boy liked motorcycles and in the Heart Gallery story he spoke of his love for ranches and cattle. The boys Heart Gallery photo was one that showed his true personality.

Jimmy stated, "It was the picture that sold me over all of his problems. Through all of the issues I kept referring to the Heart Gallery website. If it had have been in front of a brick wall like most of the state photos or a Polaroid I can't say we would have even considered this child."

Jimmy says he definitely call this a perfect match. He has an active family and they have rodeo stock bulls. They are always on the go so seeing this child's personality shine through his portrait was what did the trick.

Ben is our oldest son he is 21 and works for Union Pacific Railroad as a Conductor, Mistiss is 18 and is in college to be a Court Reporter and Ashley is 16 and is a Junior in High School she wants to go to Med School to be a Pathologist and that we are with Lutheran Social Services now

~ Jimmy, Proud father in East Texas