Leigh Anne Tuohy is on a mission. November is National Adoption Month, and she has started a social media campaign that aims to get a minimum of 30 kids adopted this month.
Leigh Anne knows firsthand the benefits of adopting from foster care. She was the inspiration for the New York Times best-selling book “The Blind Side” by Michael Lewis. She and her husband, Sean, fostered former Ole Miss and NFL football player Michael Oher when he was a teenager.
She has been an advocate for adoption for many years. “It does come from our experience with Michael because here was a kid who was pretty much on the streets and all we did is offer him a home,” Tuohy says. “And we offered him some hope. And we offered him some love and it changed his life.” She emphasizes that families don’t have to match, and kids just need homes. There are currently over 144,000 children and teens in foster care. Bullzerk, a Dallas based apparel company, is supporting her efforts with t-shirts saying “Families Don’t Have To Match.” All of the proceeds are being donated for adoption fees for families who need them.
Tuohy is an interior designer and motivational speaker. In 2010 she was awarded an honorary doctorate from Christian Brothers University. She and Sean are founding members of Grace Evangelical Church. They also established the Making It Happen Foundation. The Foundation has a mission “to live and share its commitment to faith, family, and others while opening doors to promote awareness, provide homes, and improve the standard of living and quality of life for all the children fighting to survive in the invisible cracks of our society.” It creates opportunities for deserving but underserved youth.
