The climate-controlled Safe Haven Baby Boxes are often installed at fire stations or hospitals, offering a place for a new mother in crisis to safely, anonymously, and legally surrender her child. Organizer Caitlin Kelly recently told AFR that while the years-long effort to get the boxes set up throughout the country has been successful, there is much work to be done.
"I don't mean to sound crude, but we over the last three or four months have found children in dumpsters," she detailed. "There were twins abandoned yesterday in Cleveland, Ohio. There was a child abandoned in Houston, Texas a few weeks ago in a mop bucket outside of a restaurant. There was a child abandonment inside of a restaurant bathroom."
Kelly went on to point out that America is in a post-Dobbs era, and though Roe v. Wade has been overturned, pro-lifers have got to remain diligent and come alongside these women.
"Most of the women that are prosecuted for [abandonment], they say, 'I didn't want anybody to judge me' or 'I didn't want the stigma of judgement,'" Kelly relayed. "So unfortunately, they illegally abandon, and … up to 70-80% of children are found deceased."
The boxes, she said, could prevent more deaths.
Safe Haven Baby Boxes are installed on the outside wall of a hospital or fire department and are accessible from the inside the building. A silent alarm is activated when the outside door is opened to alert those inside, and a second alarm is triggered when a child is laid into the medical-grade basinet inside the box. Emergency Medical Services are also dispatched.
"The box stays at 74 degrees," Kelly added. "They are checked monthly and weekly by the security system, and then they do maintenance every year as well."
She asserted that the Safe Haven Baby Boxes are a safe last resort option for women and their newborns.
