Safe Surrender Celebrated

This afternoon, Supervisor Don Knabe, families, firefighters, social workers and others gathered in downtown Los Angeles to recognize the 10th anniversary of Safe Surrender.

“I am overwhelmed and thrilled that we could honor this special day,” he said during the celebration. “While it is difficult to ‘celebrate’ a baby being given up, when we consider what the alternative could have been, we recognize the courage it took for a mother, who found herself in a desperate situation, to make a better choice for her child.“

The Safe Surrender Program allows parents or legal guardians to confidentially hand over an infant 72 hours old or younger to any hospital emergency room, fire station or other designated site, provided that the baby has not been abused or neglected. Since the start of the program in 2001, 87 babies have been surrendered.

“The true heroes of Safe Surrender are the people who volunteer to become parents to the infants who have been surrendered,” Knabe said. “Families come in all shapes and sizes and if a child is born and raised in a home that is loving and nurturing, there is no better nest from which they can fly.”

During the event, Knabe also gave a surprise announcement: the First5 LA Commission approved $500,000 in order to update and increase the program’s outreach.

Click here to view a video that was shown during the celebration.