TEEN GETS A MESSAGE ON TWITTER FROM A WOMAN HE'S NEVER SEEN BEFORE. 2 WEEKS LATER, HE'S HOPPING ON A PLANE TO SEE HER
By Dreamer
A mom in North Carolina has been reunited with the son she gave up for adoption 19 years ago after she found him on Google.
According to Inside Edition, Amanda Borland had been searching for now-19-year-old Jibril Hardy since his 18th birthday, but she could never find him before because she had unknowingly been misspelling his name.
“I was in shock," Borland told InsideEdition.com. "I showed my husband my phone and I just started crying."
When Borland was just 17 years old, she made the painful decision to give up Jibril for adoption, knowing she was just too young to be a mom.
As Inside Edition reports, Borland personally handed the baby over to his adoptive parents, Gene and Kerry Hardy, which is highly unusual in adoptions.
Photo Copyright © 2017 Inside Edition
Because the family had agreed upon an open adoption, Borland continued sending Jibril birthday cards when he was little and received updated pictures of the little boy in return.
“We kept a keepsake box for him. Every card she sent was saved and even the outfit he was given to us in was kept," his mother Gene told InsideEdition.com.
Then, a few years ago, the family moved and Borland no longer knew where to send the cards, but she never once forgot her son.
“This year I tried spelling it Jibril instead of ‘Jabril’ and put Texas. I also put baseball because the last picture I received from the family, he was in baseball uniform, and he came up,” Borland said.
Borland quickly found that Jibril’s picture was linked to a Twitter account. Since she did have Twitter herself, Borland’s daughter offered to help put the pair in touch.
"I was just talking about finding them the week before they contacted me," Jibril told InsideEdition.com. “I found out I was adopted at 17. The only thing I knew about them were my parent's first names. I didn't know where they were."
Though Jibril was shocked to receive the message from his mother on March 4, he immediately jumped at the chance to contact her and his sister.
Jibril, who has a 15-year-old sister named Jalia, quickly discovered that he had four more siblings that he never knew about before.
“I didn't think it would happen through social media,” Jibril said.
Less than two weeks after Jibril was first contacted by his biological family, he decided to travel to North Carolina to meet them.
“I was nervous. The moment was overwhelming. My little brother had the biggest reaction. I can't even explain the feeling when me and my parents hugged for the first time,” Jibril said.
“It’s been amazing. We picked him up from the airport. It’s not decision I ever wanted to do but I am glad we have a second chance,” Borland added. “His adoptive parents have been amazing. I can’t stop smiling. We are one big family.”
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