Those of us who work on-air here at KGW often have the chance to help out charities around the area. Sometimes it's an auction or a fundraising luncheon. Once in awhile though someone comes up with a creative twist for their annual event.

This year the Children's Trust Fund of Oregon asked several local "celebrities" to paint a picture for their upcoming event. We were supposed to come up with an interpretation on the theme "Happy, Healthy Families."

Since my artistic abilities peaked at age 5 with some fine finger-painting masterpieces I knew I needed some assistance. So I enlisted the help of my 9-year-old daughter Ali who is fearless and bold with her expressions on canvas. We decided to offer a whimsical nod to our "Good Fortune" at becoming a family. As many of you know we are a Chinese-American family brought together through adoption. We believe a family is defined not by blood but by the heart.
And we believe we are meant to be together. This is why we decided to include our favorite Chinese legend. It says "An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to be together, regardless of time place or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but never break." So here is our paintings and a couple of the others that will be on display.

This is a neat one by Margie Boule at the Oregonian.

And my personal favorite from Rama the Elephant at the Oregon Zoo!

It's all for a critical cause. The Children's Trust Fund of Oregon was formed in the mid 1980's with a mandate to find ways to prevent child abuse. Over the past 22 years it has distributed over 6.1 million donated dollars to local programs serving Oregon families.

This Blue Ribbon Celebration is set for Thursday, April 24th from 5 p.m.-7:30 p.m. You'll be able to mingle shop and socialize in the Governor Hotel's Grand Ballroom. And of course admire some art that at the very least comes from the heart. You can find out more at
http://www.ctfo.org

Ali and I send ours with prayers for all the children still waiting for their red thread connection.

And as always thanks for watching.

Tracy Barry

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