The Helderberg Baby Saver team rang in the New Year on a positive note when another baby was gifted a chance at life.
A newborn baby boy was safely relinquished through the Helderberg Baby Saver last Friday (6 January).
The infant is the 11th baby to benefit from the Somerset West facility since its inception nine years ago, and the fifth to be given up via the baby saver in recent months.
The facility, a special safe built into the side wall of Choices Crisis Pregnancy Centre in Schapenberg Road, acts as a last port of call for help and hope, enabling the safe abandonment of an unwanted baby.
When a baby is placed in the safe an alarm is triggered and appointed respondents, including security officers and emergency personnel, collect the infant. The response is linked to child protection organisation Wandisa, which sees to the statutory processes.
The saver was launched in August 2014 and used for the first time in October 2015, when Baby Ayabonga was placed in the special safe (“Baby named,” DistrictMail, 15 October 2015). The heart warming success story was followed by another in 2017 (“Newborn gets a chance at life,” 9 November 2017), two in 2018 (“Baby saver works again,” 26 April; “Fourth newborn benefits from ‘saver’, 4 October), one in 2019 (“Another cherub placed in ‘saver’, 11 July) and one in 2021.
Four babies have been placed in the safe last year: Baby Ava (“Yet another baby saved,” 10 March), Baby Ruby (“Baba Ruby vorder goed,” 21 April), Baby Nathan (“Baby Nathan underscores ‘safe abandonment’, 1 June), and Baby Thabo (“A saving chance for baby boy,” 7 September).
Last week the Helderberg Baby Saver team was alerted following another alarm activation, dispatching responders including security and paramedics who reacted within minutes.
Monique Tarling was the first responder on-scene and removed the newborn wrapped in a blanket found with a plastic bag. The baby was a boy found with the placenta still attached.
“This mommy must have been very scared and very desperate, giving birth all by herself and then bravely making her way to the saver to make sure her son would be safe and would be cared for, something she was clearly not in a position to do,” according to Sandy Immelman, founder of the Helderberg Baby Saver.
The infant was checked out by GB Med Rescue paramedics, who clamped and cut the cord before transporting him to hospital for admission. The baby, known as Baby Adam, will be placed in the care of Wandisa.
Immelman expressed being truly grateful that this little boy’s mother knew about the saver and made use of this safe relinquishment option, rather than dumping her newborn somewhere unsafe.
She extended a heartfelt “thank you” to Secure Rite Security and GB Med Rescue for monitoring and responding to HBS activations at no cost, to Choices for hosting the saver and to the amazing HBS response team comprising Amanda-Lea Jones, Grant Immelman, Karen Bufé, Léanne Keet, Monique Tarling and Sophia Warner, for their ongoing commitment and dedication.
Anyone with more info on Baby Adam must please contact Renate Malan of Wandisa on 079 063 4144.
