Texas sees first-ever Safe Haven Baby Box surrender in Lubbock

Mateo Rosiles, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Tue, January 6, 2026 at 10:45 AM UTC

3 min read

LUBBOCK, Texas — The City of Lubbock saw a milestone in Texas history, which is ensuring abandoned babies have an opportunity at life.

After over two years of installing a Safe Haven Baby Box at Lubbock Fire Rescue Station No. 9, the box saw its first use in helping a mother safely surrender her baby in a safe and anonymous manner.

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"For the mother, I don't know your situation or pain, but I do know in your darkest moment, you have the courage and love for your baby to give them an opportunity of life, and we are grateful for that," said Richard Stewart, fire chief of LFR. "We are praying for you, for your recovery, your healing and peace."

For context, Texas has a Safe Haven Law — also known as a Baby Moses Law — that allows a parent in crisis to safely and anonymously surrender an unharmed infant at a hospital, fire station, free-standing emergency centers or emergency medical services station.

Both Stewart and Monica Kelsey, CEO of Safe Haven Baby Box, said that once the child — nicknamed "Baby Lubbock" — was surrendered, it took personnel less than a minute to reach the baby. From there, fire personnel began assessing it before EMS took over the medical welfare of the child.

"To the parent, thank you," Kelsey said. "Thank you for trusting us. Thank you for trusting the fire department to take it from here. Your baby is safe and your baby is healthy, and the process is working for a forever family to get the call that they've been waiting for many years, probably."

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Kelsey said this use is also a testament to the need for more cities to use baby boxes in Texas and more in cities that already have them.

For context, Lubbock County has four in all, at the following locations:

Lubbock Fire Rescue Station No. 9 - 4814 50th St., Lubbock, Texas 79414
Wolfforth Fire & EMS Station - 305 Cedar Ave., Wolfforth, TX 79382
Covenant Children’s Hospital - 4002 24th St., Lubbock, TX 79410
Covenant Health Levelland - 1900 College Ave., Levelland, TX 79336

A fifth one is coming soon to the University Medical Center in Lubbock.

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"The more boxes that are being put in, the more we can work in communities, educating our first responders, educating the schools that this is now available anonymously, but also reminding the public that this has always been here," Kelsey said.

Since 2017, Kelsey said there have been 74 babies placed in the Safe Haven Baby Boxes across the country and 187 handoffs, with the organization having 410 active boxes across the nation.

Safe Haven Baby Box CEO Monica Kelsey speaks at a press conference about the first-ever use of the Safe Haven Baby Box in the state on Jan. 5, 2026 in Lubbock, Texas.

Kelsey and Stewart were both joined at the press conference Monday, Jan. 5 in Lubbock by Mayor Mark McBrayer, Mayor Pro Tem Christy Martinez Garcia and Councilwoman Jennifer Willson.

Martinez Garcia said that this moment shows what happens when a community comes together to address an issue for the greater good.

Lubbock Mayor Pro Tem Christy Martinez Garcia speaks at a press conference about the first-ever use of the Safe Haven Baby Box surrender in the state on Jan. 5, 2026 in Lubbock, Texas.

"It demonstrates how when we work together, good things can happen for us all and for the future of this beautiful baby that I will now call 'Baby Lubbock,'" she said. "(Mayor McBrayer) said about 'Lucky me, I live in Lubbock.' No. Blessed me. Blessed us, we live in Lubbock. And that makes all the difference, that we have a caring community with resources."

If you or anyone's parents you know are in crisis, Kelsey encourages them to call the Safe Haven Crisis line at 1-866-99BABY1 or visit https://www.shbb.org/parents-in-crisis.

Mateo Rosiles is a reporter for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal and USA TODAY Network in Texas. Got a news tip for him? Email him: mrosiles@lubbockonline.com.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock sees first-ever Safe Haven Baby Box surrender in Texas

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