Friday, April 4, 2025

October 8, 2015

One Year Since the Project Launched, The First Baby Has Been Abandoned In SA’s ‘Baby Saver’ Drop-Off Box

A pair of concerned women actually did something about the problems in their neighbourhood, which includes abandoned babies.

Sandy Immelman was concerned about the amount of babies abandoned in her home town of Somerset West. So she decided to do something about it. About a year ago, Sandy and fellow Somerset West Neighbourhood Watch member Judith Cross set up a system which allowed mothers to ensure their babies would be safe and secure with the potential to grow up in a decent environment.

The ‘Baby-Saver’ was set up in the wall of the Helderberg Clinic as a safe alternative for mothers who can’t cope – and Monday saw its first arrival. A little boy of about a month old triggered off an alarm when he was set inside the Saver. Here’s a video of how it works.

All were there within minutes of the alert coming through. Everything worked absolutely smoothly. We are really relieved that what has been put in place has saved a life.

The drop-off facility is in Schapenberg Road and is located near a main road, the minibus taxi ranks and the train station. All that Sandy wants moms to know is that there are options – options that are safer than a dustbin or river bank.

 

[source: news24]