Angels in adoption honored at Washington gala.

Gregg Dickson, director of document and content management for Wells Real Estate Funds, has been selected by U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) as one of 180 congressional Angels in Adoption[TM] for 2005.

Dickson and other award recipients were honored last week at a gala in Washington D.C., hosted by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute. President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush served as honorary co-chairs of the gala.

"We are honored to receive this award and hope this recognition will in some small way call attention to the great need that exists," Dickson said.

"In the U.S. alone there are more than 500,000 children in foster care with tens of thousands available for adoption. My wife Vicki and I, along with our daughters Whitney and Brantley, are longtime supporters of the foster care system and were privileged to adopt our son, Jamie, from Romania in 2000.

"We hope others will be motivated to consider this option."

"It is an honor to announce Gregg's Angel in Adoption award," Chambliss said. "The Dickson family deserves recognition for their compassion and generosity, and I know that others will be inspired by their commitment to children in need."

In addition to fostering nine children over the past 13 years, the Dicksons have repeatedly opened their home to assist troubled teenagers.

"Gregg and Vicki are great examples of something that's central to our company creed--caring for others," said Becky Padgett, chief people officer.

"Gregg is very deserving of this award, and we're proud he's part of the Wells team."

CCAI is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to raising congressional and public awareness about foster children in this country and the millions of orphans around the world in need of permanent, safe, and loving homes.

The Angels in Adoption[TM] program was created in 1999 to raise public awareness of the many ways in which committed individuals can help children and families through adoption. Each year, CCAI invites all members of the U.S. Congress to participate in the Angels in Adoption program as a means of recognizing individuals from their home states who have improved the lives of foster children and orphans.

Since the program's inception, members of Congress have recognized over 720 individuals from all 50 states. Additional Angels in Adoption for 2005 include First Lady Laura Bush, actress Victoria Rowell and musical group Jars of Clay.

Dickson, of Lawrenceville, is a computer science graduate of Clemson University, and a member of the Association for Information and Image Management and the Association for Computing Machinery.