Bryan loves working with his hands and sports. He dreams of having a pool party with a forever family.

AUSTIN, Texas — Every week on KVUE Daybreak, we feature a different child in Texas foster care in the hopes of helping them get adopted and find their forever family.

In a sunlit workshop in Austin’s Mueller neighborhood, 11-year-old Bryan is focused. The high-pitched buzz of a saw and the steady rhythm of a drill don’t phase him. He is calm, confident and ready to dive into his latest project: building a custom catapult.

Bryan spent the morning at the Austin Tinkering School, a creative hub where kids are encouraged to build, break and create. With the help of owner Kami Wilt, Bryan carefully assembled his wooden contraption before loading it up with the ultimate ammunition: marshmallows.

“I almost got the camera!” he joked as a marshmallow soared across the room.


A season of transition

Currently a fifth grader in Texas foster care, Bryan is at a pivotal point in his life. Like many students his age, he admits to feeling some nerves about the upcoming jump to middle school next year.

When he isn’t building machines, Bryan stays active through sports. He recently took a memorable field trip to Waco to see a Baylor University baseball game.

“We got to watch the game, and then after the game, we got to run the track,” Bryan said. “And it was a long drive.”


Dreaming of a “forever family”

While Bryan is curious and friendly, he is very clear about his biggest goal before he starts the sixth grade. When asked about his No. 1 dream, his answer was simple: finding a forever family.

“I’d want like, a dad, a mom, a pet,” Bryan said.

He already has a vision of what life would look like with a permanent family, starting with simple summer traditions. 

“Probably go to the pool for the summer and probably like, just have some fun!” he said.

Click here to learn more about adopting Bryan. 

PHOTOS: Forever Families | Bryan




















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KVUE launched the Forever Families segment with Partnerships for Children (PFC) in June 2020 to highlight children in the Heart Gallery of Central Texas who need secure and permanent families. Every day, there are nearly 1,000 children waiting to get adopted in Central Texas, according to PFC.

Editor’s note: The children who are in the Heart Gallery program and featured in KVUE’s Forever Families segments are children who have had every effort made on their behalf to connect them with family or others in their community to provide options for permanent, adoptive homes. Through no fault of their own, that hasn’t happened yet, and so in partnership with the Department of Family and Protective Services, we collaborate to bring awareness to KVUE viewers about these children in the hopes of finding them permanency before they age out.