As the Catholic Church continues to celebrate Respect Life Month throughout the month of October, it’s often a time of when pro-lifers reflect upon what can be done to promote the culture of life.
A tragic incident motivated one community in the Diocese of Sioux City to unite together to purchase the state’s first Safe Haven Baby Box.
“Almost two years ago a mother and her boyfriend had a baby in their apartment. They made a terrible decision and they drowned the baby,” said Steve Hergenreter, Fort Dodge fire chief who is a member of Holy Trinity Parish of Webster County, noted the parents were criminally charged and the case became public.
Community unites When people found out the details and the circumstances that led to the decision to kill the baby, he pointed out that several community leaders and groups took it upon themselves to look at what could have been done to prevent this.
“They found this baby box existed and started doing some research on it,” said the fire chief, who noted in the research they learned that fire stations were the number one location for the boxes because it is quieter and possibly more anonymous environment than hospitals.
Community advocates approached him about the possibility of installing a box at the station and “it seemed like something we really needed to do.”
On a personal level, Hergenreter said he took up the vocation of firefighting to help people in need and the wide scope of pro-life efforts fit within his beliefs.
“When that incident had happened, that was pretty tough to process in your mind so I was all on board when the people who started this effort came to me,” he said. “I was very proud of our community that when something tragic like that happened, they quickly were trying to come up with solutions. What happened could not be undone but they were looking at what could be done from this happening again.”
Although the Fort Dodge Fire Department agreed to install a baby box, the project wasn’t an immediate go as the state’s safe haven law at the time did not allow it.
Several citizens and legislators in the area got to work on that piece.
Maggie DeWitte, executive director of Pulse Life Advocates (formerly Iowans for Life) in Des Moines, was among Iowa pro-life advocates who worked to expand the safe haven law in the state. She stressed that the pro-life organization has been supportive of the safe haven law for years but have worked to broaden it in order to save more babies.
“The safe haven law has been in place in Iowa for a number of years but we were able to update it and expand the number of days that a woman could utilize the safe haven from 30 days to 90 days,” she said.
The pro-life advocate explained the Safe Haven Act is a law that allows parents or another person who has a parent’s authorization to leave an infant that is up to 90 days old at a hospital, healthcare facility or fire station. With the expanded law, parents can now leave a child in newborn safety devices (baby boxes) as well as with adoption service providers.
The Safe Haven Act was enacted in Iowa in 2002 to allow parents to give up custody of their infant without being arrested or charged with abandonment. Since it was established in the state, more than 60 babies have been relinquished to the state.
Providing anonymity Both DeWitte and the fire chief like having the option of giving up a baby anonymously via the baby box because physically handing over a child and having to leave your name can be a big hurdle.
“There is signage at these locations (baby boxes) so people know it is a place where they can take their baby without fear of prosecution,” said DeWitte. “There are specific requirements that have to be met in order for the baby box to be placed and one of them is there has to be 24/7 access. No baby box can be placed in an area where there would not be 24-hour presence.”
Once a baby is placed in the box, motion detectors, a camera and a silent alarm go off to alert staff at the fire station, hospital or other facility. The baby is attended to within a few minutes. After checking whether any immediate medical care is necessary, the Department of Health and Human Services is contacted.
While it is possible babies can continue to be left at a doorway, DeWitte said if a parent or parents wish to relinquish a child without making contact this makes it safer for the infant to be placed in a secure environment.
Given the great support for expansion of the safe haven law in Iowa, it changed fairly quickly. From there, Hergenreter said the community came together to finance the device funding it through the United Way campaign in Webster County. Ordering the device and installing it also moved swiftly. There was great community support for the baby box and even installation labor was donated to the effort.
“I was very proud of the fire department and so many community leaders that made it happen,” he said.
The state’s safe haven laws have been updated a few times through the years. The updated safe haven law that allowed the use of baby boxes took effect July 1, 2023 and by October of that year, the baby box was funded and installed in Fort Dodge.
When they held the ribbon cutting for the baby box, Monica Kelsey of Indiana – founder and CEO of Safe Have Baby Boxes – shared an emotional story that inspired the nonprofit. She mentioned that in Indiana a deputy was driving down a road and saw a bag that looked odd. He found a newborn baby in the bag. The baby survived and was adopted.
“It was her – Monica. Her mother was sexually assaulted and didn’t tell anyone she was pregnant. She had the baby and discarded it,” said Hergenreter.
The baby box was installed about a year ago in Fort Dodge and has been unused thus far.
Option that saves lives “But we know it’s there. If someone is in a terrible position, it gives them an option,” he said. “I can’t imagine being in that state of mind. It can save a life.”
The fire chief pointed out he has had several fire departments and fire chiefs inquire about the baby boxes. He generally shares that what you gain by having a baby box takes very little effort compared to what you may gain if a life is saved.
DeWitte pointed out that other individuals or groups may want to follow the example of the Fort Dodge community to come together for a baby box project. A similar project was undertaken in Iowa.
A second Safe Haven Baby Box in the state of Iowa was installed about a month ago at MercyOne Hospital in Des Moines.
“As we look forward to legislation that will hopefully eliminate abortion from our state as 14 other states across our country have already done, we need to make sure we are helping the families who are experiencing a crisis pregnancy,” said DeWitte. “While it’s fantastic that we have over 55 pregnancy resource centers throughout the state of Iowa, there are unfortunately times when women will not access those and feel they are in a desperate situation.”
In those circumstances, she stressed, options are important and that is what the safe have laws can offer. Options, such as the Safe Haven Baby Boxes or other similar devices, can help protect life.
“If anyone is interested in learning more about this, they can contact me,” said DeWitte, who can be reached at [email protected].