A jokester at heart, 14-year-old Jeral knows how to be serious when it counts. That’s something he looks for in adopted parents, as well.

“They have to be funny,” Jeral says. “Very strong on education, because I like education as well.  But sometimes I don’t do well because I don’t do my homework, so I like to have someone that enforces me.”

Gloria Hochman, of the National Adoption Center, says Jeral is one-of-a-kind.

“I think I’ve never heard anyone say, ‘I’d really like to be in a home where education is important.’  I think that not only would he learn from his parents — whoever they may be out there — but his parents would learn from him,” Hochman told KYW Newsradio.

Jeral’s social worker, Ben Magnussen, is inspired by Jeral’s positive outlook.

“Jeral always keeps me laughing,” he says.  “He’s got a great sense of humor. He’s really optimistic about his future, and he wants to make a difference in the world.”

For more information, go to the web site of the Adoption Center of Delaware Valley, ACDV.org.

Reported by Larry Kane, KYW Newsradio 1060
Produced by Tim McLaughlin

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