Newborn Left In Safe Haven Baby Box Adopted By Firefighter Who Found Her

OCALA, FLORIDA — A newborn baby girl was the first baby to be surrendered to Florida’s first Safe Haven Baby Box on January 2, 2023.

Kaitlin Wright spoke to the firefighter who responded to the box. He tells her the response time was less than two minutes after the baby was placed in the box. He went on to say, “When I first saw her I was shocked that there was an actual baby inside of the box. After I did my examination on her and realized that she was ok I just held her and she looked into my eyes and I fell in love with her.”

The firefighter and his wife have wanted to start a family for years, but have struggled with infertility. “It wasn’t gods plan for us to have a child that way and started looking into adoption.”

They didn’t have to look far. In April, Zoey was adopted by the firefighter who found her.

There are 148 Safe Haven Baby Boxes in the United States. There is only one in North Carolina right now. This is located at the Ashe County Sheriff’s Office. Tap here for the website.

To speak to a trained professional about surrendering a newborn – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – contact the National Safe Haven Crisis Line at 1-866-99BABY1 (1-866-992-2291).