Author: Jim Venglarik
Moses’ Basket
In the Old Testament, to save baby Moses from a certain death, his Hebrew mother placed him in a basket in the Nile River, enabling him to be ultimately rescued by the daughter of the Pharaoh of Egypt. He was adopted and raised as an Egyptian Prince. From this, our NC State Council is developing a new Life Program called Moses’ Basket.
Your State Council Officers have been advocates for the “Adoption Option” for pregnant mothers over the past fraternal year and this article and the new program it presents is another step in providing your Council with help. God gave up his Son, Jesus, in human form for adoption by St. Joseph, our model for the COR program in many of our parishes. He is an ideal model for us, men, in our support for Adoption! We, too, must strongly support women choosing life and choosing adoption for their babies, a difficult decision for them to make, giving up a part of them. Making this an easier option for women, many in their teenage years, is what our new program is all about!
Safe Haven Baby Boxes(SHBB) is an organization started in Indiana in 2015 by Monica Kelsey, who was, herself, left anonymously at a hospital, having been conceived in rape. https://www.shbb.org/. SHBB enables mothers (within the first 30 days of their babies’ birth) who cannot care for their new born, to drop their babies off anonymously at a hospital, fire station, police station, urgent care station, etc. in a walk up, conditioned, in-building container, where there is monitoring and persons present 24/7. The babies are then available for adoption under the “surrender laws” in many states, including North Carolina. This program is authorized by our Supreme Council and was spotlighted in an article called “Sweet Surrender”, in the January/February, 2024 Columbia Magazine. (https://www.kofc.org/en/news-room/columbia/2024/jan-feb/sweet-surrender.html). As Ms. Kelsey says in the Columbia article, it allows a mother to “give her baby a chance at life—no shame, no blame, no name.” There are currently about 200 baby boxes spread around the US, in 20 states, with 110 in Indiana. At least 75% of the SHBB implemented in Indiana have had some Knights’ involvement. In fact, the baby box for the first box-surrendered baby was sponsored by the Indiana Knights.
We currently have two SHBB in North Carolina, each on the Virginia line, one just above Boone and the other above Elizabeth City near the coast. The initial cost for the setup is about $15,000 - $20,000 with annual cost for monitoring and maintenance at about $500. SHBB organization assists with consulting, legal assistance, marketing and fund-raising help.
Worthy NC Knights, this is an opportunity for us to save babies from abortion and provide safe adoptive homes for some of the 2,000,000 US families waiting to adopt a baby. Ms. Kelsey claimed, “I always say the Knights are my No. 1 support. They’re right there on the front lines with me.”
There are several Knights within North Carolina who have volunteered to support this effort and will be assisting with an explanation of Moses’ Basket (our NC KofC name for this program) at the upcoming NC State Convention on May 3-5. They are: Brothers John Krumpos, Mark Furphy, Paul Spire, Jay Merritt, and me. If you are attending the convention, please stop by the Moses’ Basket table on Saturday, May 4th, for more information. Not surprisingly, we already have a North Carolina Knight who is planning to sponsor what may be our first NC KofC Moses’ Basket. Thank you! And, he is posing a challenge for other NC Knights and Councils to follow…for the lives of these babies. This is our mission as men, fathers and protectors. For our NC Knight’s anonymous pledge, please see the attached.
You may feel that big cities like Raleigh or Charlotte are not appropriate for this type of assistance, especially since our 2 current NC locations are more rural. Not so! A Moses’ Basket shows no geographic or demographic preference and is effective and successful anywhere. That means any council or district can join with SHBB and a local fire station, hospital, etc. to implement a Moses’ Basket to save babies’ lives, and provide adoptive families with new lives to enrich their own.
For more information, please contact any of the following Knights:
John Krumpos: John.krumpos@gmail.com (540-960-1825)
Mark Furphy: pregnancysupport@kofcnc.org (336-512-8442)
Jim Venglarik: life@kofcnc.org (516-924-4384)
Thank you for your support for Life!
Vivat Jesus,
Jim Venglarik
KofC NC Life Director