Indiana’s 115th baby box to be blessed in Greenfield

GREENFIELD, Ind. (WISH) — Indiana’s 115th Baby Box will be blessed Tuesday afternoon at the Sugar Creek Township Fire Station 42.

The mission of Safe Haven Baby Boxes is to allow a safe, legal surrender of babies with complete anonymity. The project was led by Leadership Hancock County which provided funding.

Sugar Creek Fire Chief Brandon Kleine said in a release, “The baby box gives a mother an option to legally and safely surrender a baby in their time of need. This comes with the understanding that nobody’s crisis is the same, yet we can be sure to provide a positive option to our community.”

If a woman chooses to surrender her infant via the Baby Box, the door locks when the mother closes the box. Personnel are alerted by an alarm that lets them a know a baby has been surrendered. They then go to and retrieve the infant within five minutes. The infant is transported immediately to the hospital for medical evaluation and the baby is given to an adoptive family.

Back in 2016, Safe Haven Baby Boxes were formed by Monica Kelsey, who learned that she was abandoned as an infant. As a result joined in the fight to protect women in crisis and end infant abandonment.

Kelsey says in the release that Indiana leads the nation in preparation to serve women in crisis in their infants. “We are pleased to have another community ready for anonymous surrender should the situation arise.”

The blessing was set for 2 p.m. Tuesday at the fire station located at 473 County Road S. 500 W. in Greenfield.

The states of Indiana, Ohio, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Alabama, Iowa, Missouri, West Virginia, and Mississippi all have a Baby Box presence.

The new location is the 204th Baby Box across the United States.

Families seeking to adopt a Safe Haven baby should reach out to their local Department of Family Services to register for foster care to adopt. Anyone who would like to donate can click here.