Earlier this month the Helderberg Baby Saver received its fifth baby.
The responders were on scene at Choices Crisis Pregnancy Centre, Schapenburg Road – where the Baby Saver is housed – within minutes, along with Secure Rite armed response, who monitor the Baby Saver 24/7 and dispatch the response teams, and GBMed Rescue.
The ambulance crew quickly established that the baby was safe and healthy, and transferred her to the local hospital, where the responder met up with a social worker from Wandisa Adoption Agency, the Child Protection Organisation the Baby Saver partners with..
The little girl was well cared for and healthy, and the team decided to call her Baby Storm, as the month of June had brought some rather inclement weather.
Wandisa and the Baby Saver team ensured Baby Storm was cuddled and loved while the necessary procedures were put in place.
“We are so grateful that this precious baby was safely surrendered through our saver,” said Sandy Immelman, founder of the Helderberg Baby Saver.
“Once again we appeal to everyone to spread the word that this safe alternative is available to desperate women – there are no cameras and the saver automatically locks and sends a signal to Secure Rite, so that response is within minutes.”
She adds: “We hope that a Safe Haven law is passed in South Africa to curb the number of unsafe abandonments currently occurring. The estimation is that over 3 500 babies are found alive every year in our country, and it is commonly acknowledged that for every baby found alive, there will be two who are found dead.
“Until there are legal, safe places for babies to be surrendered anonymously – as there are in many other countries, including Namibia – this desperate situation will continue. We are failing the most vulnerable in our communities,” said Ms Immelman.
Founder of Wandisa and Bayakhanya’s child protection advocate, Debbie Wybrow, agrees.
“The proposed Children’s Amendment Bill 2019 is fundamentally flawed – it makes no distinction between a parent who chooses to ‘safely’ relinquish a child and one who unsafely abandons a child, nor does it provide options for families in crisis. By legalising safe havens, children’s lives could be saved,” she says.
Visit www.babysaver.co.za and follow Helderberg Baby Saver and Bayakhanya on Facebook, or go to Change.Org on http://chng.it/65V5HwsxY6 for information on, or to register your opposition to the Children’s Amendment Bill 2019.