A baby was recently handed over to WHSV3, the first Safe Haven Baby Box in the United States. Reported this week.
first Safe Haven Baby Box The facility was built in Woodburn, Indiana, in 2016 and is the first of 260 that have been established across the country since then, according to the report.
“This adoption is special – our vision has come to life,” said Monica Kelsey, founder of Safe Haven Baby Box. “We're proud that our community has been a pioneer of change and given this mother in crisis the option to remain anonymous. We're honored that she trusted us and know she loves her baby dearly.”
This baby is also the first baby to be handed over to the Woodburn Fire Station in its eight years since it was established.
“We feel excited, proud and honored for the mission of Safe Haven Baby Box,” said Fire Chief Joshua Hale.
A baby box is a temperature-controlled incubator that is often built into the exterior wall of a fire station, police station or hospital and can be accessed from the inside. At-risk mothers can safely and legally place their newborns in the baby box from the outside. Once the baby is inside the baby box, the outer door is locked and the mother is allowed out before an alarm sounds to alert emergency personnel and hospital staff to the baby's presence.
The baby is then quickly removed and sent to a hospital for a medical examination, after which the baby is usually placed in the custody of the state and often quickly put up for adoption.
“The box worked as designed. The box worked perfectly. The firefighters did what they were trained to do. They had this baby in their arms within a matter of minutes,” Kelsey said.
