NORWALK, Iowa —

The Norwalk Fire Department held a blessing and opening ceremony for their new Safe Haven Baby Box Tuesday afternoon.

A Safe Haven Baby Box is a temperature-controlled box at a fire station or hospital that allows mothers to surrender their baby anonymously and legally. Norwalk's Safe Haven box is only the third in the state, behind one in Fort Dodge and another in Des Moines.

Baby boxes have been protected under Iowa's Safe Haven law since 2023.

But Norwalk's fire chief, Jennifer Porter, says this particular box is especially impactful to the community.

"I don't think this was even just a station desire," she said. "I think this is a community desire."

A desire sparked from tragedy: the death of a baby after their mother and grandfather, Megan and Rodney Staude, admi

See Full Page