Although she has yet to learn of any babies being abandoned in the Jonesboro area, Christina Forrester of Craighead County Right to Life said being proactive could better ensure the safety of newborn babies.
“I have seen all these news stories across Arkansas and across the country about babies being left on sidewalks and in dumpsters,” Forrester said.
Jonesboro Police Department Communications Officer Sally Smith said there were seven reports she pulled up when searching abandoned children, but none involved a local infant. Despite no documented occurrence of baby abandonment in the last three years, two organizations united to raise funding to help prevent an occurrence.
Craighead County Right to Life and the Knights of Columbus were able to raise funds for the installation of a Safe Haven Baby Box at Jonesboro Fire Department No. 3 on Brazos Street.