Student Photo Exhibit Portrays Life at Down Home Ranch

May 5-31

Event: The photography exhibit, "Down Home Ranch: Exploring Community" traces life at Down Home Ranch, a community for people with mental disabilities.

This event, sponsored in part by the University of Texas School of Journalism, is free and open to the public.

When: May 6 through May 31, The opening reception is 7-9 p.m., Friday, May 5

Where: RoseMinn Gallery (www.roseminn.com), 116 Depot Street, Elgin, Texas 78621

Background: "Down Home Ranch: Exploring Community" is a collection of photographs taken over six months and serves as the thesis work of Meg Loucks, who will earn her master's in photojournalism from The University of Texas at Austin this month.

Down Home Ranch (www.downhomeranch.org) was established by Judy and Jerry Horton to provide a community for their daughter Kelly, who was born with Down syndrome, and people like her.

After researching the challenges of raising a child with a major disability from birth to adulthood, the Hortons bought a 216-acre piece of farmland in Elgin, Texas. Today, 15 years since its inception, the Ranch is a working farm and ranch -- home to 12 residents and host to a summer residential camping program for more than 250 teens and adults with physical and mental handicaps.

This photography collection represents an investigation into daily life that portrays the sense of community at Down Home. It centers on the Ranch's mission to promote a life of dignity, responsibility and growth, transcending the limitations imposed by the residents' handicaps. The project quickly developed into space for exploring intimate moments and interpersonal relationships.

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Contact:
Meg Loucks
(503) 984-3414