“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”—Hebrews 13:2

Last month, Mt. Calvary helped to save the life of someone we’ll probably never meet. Praise be to God.

In June 2023, Abby Pulliam (Wiese) contacted Mt. Calvary about a passion project of hers. She wanted to put a Safe Haven Baby Box in the Des Moines area and asked if we would be willing to help.

For those who may not know, Iowa is one a about 19 states in America that have “Safe Haven” laws. Iowa law allows parents to give up a child’s physical custody without fear of abandonment charges, as long as the child is under 90 days old. The child can be “surrendered” at a hospital, fire station, health care facility, or adoption provider. The Safe Haven Baby Box is a monitored, temperature-controlled device that allows children to be surrendered anonymously and retrieved with minutes. These boxes are usually located at places listed above. 

This law is in keeping with our Christian history and ideals. One of the first ministries that the Church undertook was caring for widows and orphans and it continues that ministry around the world today. Even here in Iowa, what is now known as “Lutheran Family Services” started as “Lutheranish Kinderfreund Gesellschaft” (Lutheran Children’s Friends Society), an orphanage in Ft. Dodge. In our Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, we have always stood with “right to life” causes, advocating for restrictions on abortion and euthanasia. The Baby Box is another part of that advocacy, saving the lives of newborn babies by allowing for them to be surrendered anonymously in accord with Iowa law. If young parents do the brave thing of having a baby only to find out it’s too much for them, they can relinquish the child to a caregiving facility, rather than abandoning the child. 

As part of the mission giving from the estate of Jim and Pat Zitzmann, Mt. Calvary funded a large portion of Abby’s project. Abby then worked with MercyOne hospital administrators and others to find a suitable location. On October 8, 2024, the Safe Haven Baby Box was dedicated at MercyOne’s downtown campus near 6th and University.

On October 15, just a week after it was dedicated, a 1-month-old baby girl was placed in the box. Within a week of its dedication, the Safe Haven Baby Box has already saved a life. A young girl will now have a chance to be adopted, to grow up in a loving family, and to bless our world because of our generosity. 

We may never meet this girl. She may never know that she was surrendered in a Baby Box let alone who fought to have the box installed or how the box was paid for. None of that matters. What matters is that one of God’s children will have life and hopefully she will have the opportunity to know her Savior, Jesus Christ. We are simply thankful for the opportunity to entertain that small angel for a few minutes.

In Christ,

Tom Vanderbilt