In what turned out to be a historic LGBT Pride Month with the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling to legalize same-sex marriage, looking back on Heart Gallery NYC’s 2^nd annual PRIDE Exhibit evokes extra goosebumps of inspiration.

On June 1, beautiful portraits of 36 foster children, including 12 LGBT youth, were unveiled in the New Victory Theater in Times Square for a special launch and press event.

“This exhibition is about honoring the nearly 12,000 New York City children living in foster care and the hundreds waiting and ready to be adopted,” said Laurie Sherman Graff, who founded the chapter in 2006.

Heart Gallery NYC partnered with the Office of LGBQT Policy & Practice at the New York City Administration for Children’s Services in what director Rhodes Perry called a connection that “will empower more LGBTQ young people to thrive into healthy, happy, and independent adults.”

With a core mission of finding “forever families” for foster care children, the Heart Gallery of America harnesses the power of photography to inspire families nationwide to consider adoption. Images by celebrity and award-winning photographers capture a smile on each child’s face, along with a sparkle of infinite possibility in their eyes. Volunteer celebrity photographers for the 2015 PRIDE Exhibit included Antoine Verglas, Deborah Feingold and Heidi Gutman.

The Duggal Big Picture Foundation is a fervent supporter of the Heart Gallery of America’s mission, and a proud print sponsor for Heart Gallery NYC. We congratulate them on a second straight PRIDE Exhibit success while looking forward to next year’s edition.