Couple Looking To Adopt Takes Out Ad Space On NJ Turnpike

August 19, 2013 / newyork.cbslocal.com

Restaurants, amusement parks and hospitals all use billboards to advertise. Now, one couple has marketed themselves on the New Jersey Turnpike in hopes that they will find a child.

Orna and Jay, who asked that their real names not be revealed, adopted their son Ben more than two years ago through an agency, CBS 2′s Christine Sloan reported.

“The moment I held Ben as my son I knew I felt happiness I never felt I could feel,” Orna said.

The couple spent two years navigating the adoption process when they adopted Ben. Now, the couple is ready to adopt again. They want Ben to have a brother or a sister, but the process is not as simple the second time around because many birth mothers seem to look for childless couples.

“They say ‘I can make this couple’s day, my kid’s going to get tons of attention,’” Jay said.

The Maryland couple decided that they needed a way to stand out in other states so they took out a billboard on the New Jersey Turnpike. The ad comes complete with their photo, phone number, website, and five words “Loving Couple Looking To Adopt”.

“We feel as a couple our goal is to market ourselves to as many people to let them know there’s an option for their 16-, 18-, 20-, or 25-year-old young woman who isn’t ready to be a mom,” Jay said.

Orna is a doctor and Jay is a sales executive. They haven’t gotten a call yet but they realize that they are looking for a needle in a haystack.

“What we hope to find is that one unique situation where someone picks up the phone or goes to our website and says ‘hey I can give a great gift to this couple,’” Jay explained.

If the call does come the couple plans to go through an adoption agency. Orna and Jay chose New Jersey because birth mothers only have 72 hours to change their minds, in Maryland the grace period is 28 days.