New Safe Haven Baby Box at Crawfordsville hospital

There will be an upcoming blessing and dedication for the new Safe Haven Baby Box at Franciscan Health Crawfordsville. The blessing and dedication will be held outside on the southside of the hospital. Once open, the Safe Haven Baby Box will be available to new mothers who wish to utilize Indiana’s Safe Haven Law, which enables a person to give up an unwanted infant anonymously without fear of arrest or prosecution. The anonymity of the Safe Haven Baby Box is a last resort for women in crisis and displays our Franciscan value of respect for life.

Speakers at the blessing will include Terry Klein, COO, Franciscan Health Crawfordsville; Monica Kelsey, founder and CEO, Safe Haven Baby Boxes; The Most Reverend Bishop Timothy Doherty, Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana and more.

“We’re excited to have a Safe Haven Baby Box at Franciscan Health Crawfordsville. This device is the first of its kind in Crawfordsville and we believe it is directly in line with the core values of our organization, including respect for life,” said Terry Klein, chief operating officer, Franciscan Health Crawfordsville.

The installation of the Safe Haven Baby Box is made possible by generous donations from numerous individuals and organizations in Crawfordsville and the surrounding community. Franciscan Health Foundation Western Indiana has worked diligently this past year to fundraise for the Franciscan Health Crawfordsville Safe Haven Baby Box after successfully raising enough to install them at Franciscan Health Lafayette and Franciscan Health Rensselaer as well.

The Safe Haven Baby Box is built into an exterior wall of a building and is climate controlled. When a baby is placed inside, the exterior door locks and silent alarm alerts medical personnel so they can immediately retrieve the infant.

Franciscan Health Crawfordsville is located at 1710 Lafayette Road – Crawfordsville, Ind. 47933.

About Franciscan Health

The Franciscan Alliance healthcare ministry began in Lafayette, Ind., in 1875. Today, Franciscan Alliance is one of the largest Catholic healthcare systems in the Midwest with 12 hospital campuses, more than 19,000 employees and a number of nationally recognized Centers of Health Care Excellence. Hospitals include: Franciscan Health Carmel; Franciscan Health Crawfordsville; Franciscan Health Crown Point; Franciscan Health Dyer; Franciscan Health Hammond; Franciscan Health Indianapolis; Franciscan Health Lafayette; Franciscan Health Michigan City; Franciscan Health Mooresville; Franciscan Health Munster; Franciscan Health Olympia Fields (IL); and Franciscan Health Rensselaer.