Baby Abandoned in Fairbanks Found with Desperate Note from Mother

A Good Samaritan rescued an abandoned baby in Fairbanks, Alaska who was found in a cardboard box along with a desperate note written by the baby’s mother.

According to The New York Post, Fairbanks’ resident Roxy Lane found the newborn when the temperature in Fairbanks was in the single digits, with a wind chill of 12 below zero. She found him near a row of mailboxes close to her home.

“Please help me!!!” the note began.

“I was born today on December 31, 2021 (at) 6 a.m. I was born 12 weeks premature. My mom was 28 weeks when she had me. My parents and grandparents don’t have food or money to raise me. They NEVER wanted to do this to me,” the note continued.

“My mom is so sad to do this. Please take me and find me a LOVING FAMILY. My parents are begging whoever finds me. My name is Teshawn.”

The baby was taken to a hospital and was “found to be in good health.”

In a social media post, Lane wrote that she was struggling with how to process her feelings after finding the abandoned newborn.

“Clearly, someone in our community felt so lost and hopeless that they made probably the hardest choice of their lives to leave that innocent life on the side of the road with nothing but some blankets and a name. But she named him! There’s some love there, even if she made a terrible decision,” Lane wrote.

“Today I saved a baby and I’ll probably think about Teshawn for the rest of my life.”

According to subsequent news reports, Alaska State Troopers have since found the baby’s mother. She was transported to a hospital for evaluation and medical care.

Under Alaska’s Safe Surrender Act, a mother can surrender her infant with a peace officer, firefighter, emergency medical personnel, other medically trained individuals or anyone believed to be able to provide the baby with care, with no consequence as long as the child is under three weeks old.

The mother, who was identified as a minor, has not had any criminal charges filed against her.

The incident is simultaneously heartbreaking and heartwarming.

It’s tragic that a young mother felt the need to surrender her baby, hoping someone, anyone, would be able to help.

What does it say about our nation, supposedly the wealthiest on earth, that a family with no food and no money would feel compelled to abandon their newest member because of an inability to provide for them?

According to the Pew Research Center, since the Great Recession, many of America’s poorest families have lost significant amounts of wealth. From 2007-2016, “the median net worth of the richest 20% increased 13%, to $1.2 million.”

Yet, “the net worth of families in lower tiers of wealth decreased by at least 20% from 2007 to 2016. The greatest loss – 39% – was experienced by the families in the second quintile of wealth, whose wealth fell from $32,100 in 2007 to $19,500 in 2016.”

In the midst of the Great Recession, the federal government’s decision to create and spend trillions of dollars seems to have largely benefitted the wealthiest families, and done very little for families in severe financial need.

Yet, the story is also heartwarming.

Every year, many young women faced with an unplanned pregnancy choose to abort their child, rather than give them a chance at life. In this case, the young mother courageously chose to keep her baby. And that deserves praise, commendation, and compassion.

Please pray for this young mother, and that Teshawn may find a loving and kind family to care for him.