A firefighter who discovered an abandoned newborn in a designated baby box has decided to adopt her.
A baby was placed in a Safe Haven Baby Box at a fire station in Florida earlier this year and has now been adopted by the firefighter who discovered her.
These boxes are now at various fire departments in the US. They allow for those who are not in a position to take care of their newborn to give it a better future.
On January 2nd, a firefighter who was on an overnight shift was alerted to a silent alarm at around 2:00 am which indicated that a baby had been left in the box.
While he initially thought it was a false alarm, it wasn't until he opened the box to check that he found a baby girl in a pink blanket, according to WKMG-TV.
Speaking to
TODAY, the firefighter said: "She had a little bottle with her and she was just chilling. I picked her up and held her. We locked eyes, and that was it. I’ve loved her since that moment.”
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Credit: Safe Haven Baby Box[/caption]
As it turned out, the man and his wife had struggled for over 10 years to have a child and had been considering adoption when the incident occurred.
When taking her to the hospital for a check-up, the firefighter decided to ask about adoption.
“I didn't call my wife right away because I didn't want to wake her up, but I knew she'd be on board,” he said.
Leaving a note with the baby indicating that he was willing to adopt her and was registered to do so, he revealed the news to his wife.
"My biggest fear was that the note I wrote wouldn’t stay with [the baby] and she’d be gone. It was a very stressful few days,” he added.
It was only two days after she was left in the box that the couple brought her home and she was officially adopted in April.
Naming her Zoey, the couple hopes her biological mum knows "her child is taken care of and that she’s loved beyond words."
Speaking about the discovery in January, founder of the Safe Haven Baby Boxes, Monica Kelsey, said at a press conference: "We know this baby will be so loved by an adoptive family. And we are so thrilled to be a part of protecting infants from abandonment."
