AUSTIN, Texas — A picture really does say a thousand words. And when you're working to help a child find a family of their own, every click of the camera is truly a labor of love.
"The first time I saw what we were doing and who we were photographing, the kids, it was definitely like a meant-to-be kind of moment," said Aubré Salas with Gypc Girl Photography.
Salas is a volunteer photographer with Partnerships for Children who enjoys showing the inner and outer beauty of every child.
"These kids have such a big heart and they just want to be loved. And I hope that my photography conveys the spirit that they have," Salas said.
PHOTOS | Forever Families: The woman behind Gypc Girl Photography
After she's done with each shoot and she puts the camera away, what she feels stays with her.
"I definitely cry a lot, mostly just because it's so heartwarming," Salas said. "I just want to take them all home."
She knows that each photograph could play a part in the future life of every child. That's something she cherishes.
"Whenever we [recently] did a big gallery, showing all the photos, it was neat to know that a lot of mine weren't displayed because they were already adopted," Salas said.
KVUE launched the Forever Families segment with Partnerships for Children (PFC) in June 2020 to highlight children in the Heart Gallery of Central Texas who need secure and permanent families. Every day, there are nearly 1,000 children waiting to get adopted in Central Texas, according to PFC.
Editor's note: The children who are in the Heart Gallery program and featured in KVUE's Forever Families segments are children who have had every effort made on their behalf to connect them with family or others in their community to provide options for permanent, adoptive homes. Through no fault of their own, that hasn’t happened yet, and so in partnership with the Department of Family and Protective Services, we collaborate to bring awareness to KVUE viewers about these children in the hopes of finding them permanency before they age out.
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