An American couple living in Georgia, United States, have chosen a very unique method to search for a Jamaican child to adopt.

The couple, Delroy and Lesa Thompson, who are both teachers, have placed an advertisement on the popular networking site Facebook, seeking the attention of all pregnant Jamaican women who might possibly want to consider adoption.

When THE WEEKEND STAR contacted the couple, who has also created a website dedicated to their search, the wife revealed they wanted a Jamaican baby because "my husband is Jamaican and I love the people.We believe we can provide a loving home for a child that would become our own."

long time

She said the couple has received approval from the Child Development Agency (CDA) in Kingston, but decided to take their search to the Internet, because they realised that finding a child from a children's home could take a long time.

"Based on our research we understand that finding a baby on our own and then going through the CDA for a private adoption is less time consuming.As teachers we cannot afford the US$20,000 to US$30,000 it cost to go through an adoption agency in the United States. By thinking out of the box, we decided to use Facebook to target women in Jamaica with our interest in adopting from the island," she said.

curious persons

The couple said they have so far received 'dozens of responses' since they placed the ad less than a week ago. They said, however, that some emails were from curious persons, while others were from well-wishers. They said they did receive calls from persons who provided them with leads.

Aware of the fact that there could be persons looking to rip them off, the couple said they will not be sending money to anyone who contact them and said all arrangements would be made through the CDA office in the parish of the child's birth.

On the website they created, the couple showcases a picture of their home as well as home videos of their house and lifestyle in general. They also provided detailed information about each of their backgrounds, revealing that together they have several years of experience working with children.The couple has no children of their own but say they have nurtured 'hundreds' in their jobs as teachers. The couple's website is http://jaadopting. homestead.com/ADOPTING.html.