by Madison Naves | WeINSPIRE Journalist 

BIRMINGHAM, AL -- When options are limited, people often turn to last resorts hoping for the best. Sometimes even the “best” options are complicated and require extreme selflessness. Some options can even change the course of a person’s life. Monica Kelsey understands the strict judgment needed to make big decisions and does not take them lightly. She is the founder of Safe Haven Baby Boxes (SHBB).

In 2016 Kelsey became known as “The Baby Box Lady” after inventing a safety device to surrender children lawfully. She created SHBB in 2016 as a way to safely and anonymously surrender babies while supporting parents without judgment. SHBB has installed 61 safety devices in 6 states and hosts a 24-hour national hotline to help parents in need. They have received over 4000 calls within the U.S. Helping refer over 500 women to crisis pregnancy centers, seven adoption referrals, and facilitated in 98 Safe Haven surrenders. Most recently, a viral TikTok from SHBB has gained over 20 million views by demonstrating how baby boxes work and educating others about options for surrendering.

SHBB works to expand Safe Haven Laws (SHL) in a way that remains anonymous, freeing parents of judgment. Since the boxes have been installed, no abandoned babies have been found dead in the state of Indiana.

Kelsey first got the idea to produce baby boxes in America after traveling to Africa on a speaking tour. On her last day of the tour, she visited a church with a container called a “baby safe” installed through a wall on the chapel's side. She asked what it was and found out it was a box designed for women to surrender infants anonymously at night to avoid judgment. The church had saved seven surrendered children that year. 

“I knew we already had SHL in the U.S., but why did we not have boxes like this that allowed women not to have to feel that shame or judgment?” Kelsey asked herself.

On her flight back home from Cape Town, South Africa, she began designing her version of a baby safe on a napkin to expand SHL in a way that could remain anonymous and judgment-free.

SHL initiated in 1999 in Texas. These laws allow the relinquishing of infants to designated areas in a lawful way to decrease the number of abandoned infants. Unfortunately, SHL varies by state with numerous stipulations; Because of these stipulations, about 150 infants are still abandoned each year, as reported by VOA News. Failure to comply with a state’s specific regulation can lead to a parent's prosecution or the injury of a child. Babies often are abandoned from fear of judgment, discovery, and lack of access to prenatal care facilities. Usually, if the infant is left in a dangerous area and not found within a reasonable time, the baby can be injured or killed. This reason is why SHBB proposes that baby boxes are necessary.

“Every state has SHL now, which basically says a woman can walk into a Safe Haven location, hand her child to a person, and turn around no questions asked,” Kelsey said. “The problem with that is they are asking questions.”

SHBB works to allow lawful surrenders to places like police departments, fire stations, and hospitals by providing a locked incubator for the child that alerts medical professionals within 30 seconds of submission. 

“Anytime you're bringing up a new program within the U.S., especially one dealing with infants or babies, the political part always gets in the way,” Kelsey mentioned. “This is not something that is on a side of the pro-life or pro-choice movement. This is a fine line in the middle; this is a human rights issue.”

Kelsey wants people to understand that without options like SHBB, an unwanted newborn is likely to end up abandoned unlawfully, presenting a deadly situation for the infant or prosecution for whoever has left the child. This issue became evident in 2018 when a SHBB Bill passed in Michigan before being vetoed by former Governor Rick Snyder. Unfortunately, despite SHL still being in effect, two babies were found deserted in 2021 in Michigan.

“It’s a tragic thing that could have been avoided, ” Kelsey said.

Fighting legislation to build and keep baby boxes is only one of the struggles SHBB faces. Other struggles include pushback for helping facilitate adoptions as well as the judgment parents are faced with when trying to surrender their children.

“We don’t want babies put into our boxes. That's probably one of the biggest misconceptions that I get, ” Kelsey said. “Let's be honest; the SHL isn’t always the best option unless it's the only option left.” 

SHBB’s empathy and knowledge have saved 100s of children and parents. They hope to make baby boxes available nationwide and eventually across the globe. They are also striving to install cameras into the boxes to cut down on alert time while only surveilling the baby submitted inside the box. To find more information on SHBB and how to access help, visit Shbb.org.