In a state where so many political figures make a big show about how much they care about babies, some communities are walking the walk and providing an important option for desperate parents with nowhere else to turn.

In 2023, Lebanon, Ohio, installed a Safe Haven Baby Box at one of its fire stations. At the time, it was the 10th such box to be installed in the Buckeye State. Last month, it was used for the first time.

According to a press release from the Lebanon Police Department, the city’s communications center received an alarm at 3:34 p.m. from the newborn safety incubator. When police and fire units arrived, they found a female infant who was immediately taken to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.

Contrast the courage it must have taken for the parent of that infant to take advantage of a safe, legal way to try to do better for their child with another news story.

In Bryan, Ohio, police were pursuing a driver who was so reckless in his attempt to flee that “an infant was ejected from the moving car. …”

The department said the child was transported to a hospital — this time in Toledo, and is fine.

In its press release, the Lebanon Police Department reminded that under Ohio Revised Code, “a parent may voluntarily deliver the parent’s child who is not older than thirty days, without intent to return for the child, to any of the following,” and goes on to list three options, including a newborn safety incubator.

Safe Haven’s motto is “Hope begins here: A lifeline for infants, a beacon of hope for parents.” So far, 10 Ohio communities have understood the importance of this message.