'Baby box' soon to be active in Portales

After two years of discussion, a Safe Haven Baby Box will soon be active at the Portales Fire Department.

The baby box was delivered to the fire department on Monday. The official day as to when it will be active is still unknown. However, Angie Smith, the chair for Right to Life of Curry and Roosevelt counties, said contractors will get it installed soon and it will then be tested to make sure it's working correctly. She anticipates that to take only a couple of weeks.

"They're starting to spread across New Mexico," Smith said. "I think this is going to be a wonderful, wonderful thing."

A Safe Haven Baby Box, according to the organization's website, "is a designated location where parents can anonymously and safely leave an infant they are unable or unwilling to care for."

It "takes the face-to-face interaction out of the surrender and protects the mother from being seen."

Smith said she first learned about the baby box from a pastor in South Korea. The box helped save over 1,500 babies, she said.

After doing some research, Smith contacted those with the organization to help bring one to Portales. Community members raised more than $16,000 for the project, while some contractors have volunteered their time to help install it.

"It just proves even further how pro-life Portales and Roosevelt County are," Smith said.

Smith said she first went to the City Council to explain the idea in February of 2022.

"We've given 100% support from the City Council on this," said Sarah Austin, Portales' city manager.

However, there was a delay along the way as the city attorney had some concerns about the city's liability in owning a baby box.

"There was an argument over a state statute on whether or not the baby had to be placed into somebody's hands or if the box would count," Austin said.

After doing some research on other entities, Austin said the Council felt like there wasn't much of a risk of litigation.

"They knew this is the best choice for them (the parent) and their child," Smith said.

Utilizing the baby box is a completely anonymous action. All one has to do is open the box, leave the baby, and walk away.

Portales Fire Chief TJ Cathey explained how the baby box works once it's opened.

"It will alert our dispatch center, and there will be an alert inside the station, not outside," Cathey said.

The box, depending on what the weather is like, will keep the baby cooled or heated until someone can respond to the baby.

The baby is then examined to make sure it hasn't been abused or neglected.

Smith said there's a 90-day waiting period to give mom, dad, grandparents, or other relatives the chance to come forward and claim the baby.

"From our standpoint, anything that we as firefighters and (first responders) can do to protect life, we're going to be all for it," Cathey said.

"We just want to make sure that they have a secure place to take their baby," Austin said. "We don't walk in their shoes, we don't know their situation or their story."