(NEWSCHANNEL 3) - There are an estimated 4,000 children in Michigan waiting to be adopted. They are kids who are harder to place because they're older or are part of a sibling group.

The effort to increase awareness of these children and to try and find loving adoptive families for them has been turned into an initiative called the "Michigan Heart Gallery."

It features the kids themselves in photos and on video, in some cases talking about why they so desperately want to be adopted.

These are kids, who in most cases, have had a traumatic past that may have included abuse, neglect, exposure to drugs or alcohol, grief, loss, and separation. But, their spirits are undaunted as they hope to try again. They still dream of finding a family where they will fit in. A family who will love them.

On November 28th in Kalamazoo, adoptive parent Laura Barley shared her story at a forum on adoption.

"I just look at these pictures on the wall. I met a lot of these kids two years ago when I was still looking. It's a shame people go out of the U.S. to adopt when there are so many kids in the U.S. who need homes," says Barley.

As Barley found, adopting enriched her family. But, it wasn't easy. There was paperwork and the issue of trying to develop a trusting bond with a child who may have been hurt so many times before.