Monica Kelsey: Saving Lives with 'Safe Haven Baby Boxes' - A Mission to Prevent Infant Abandonment
Team Never Quit
Marcus Luttrell
4.9 • 6K Ratings
🗓️ 15 July 2026
⏱️ 62 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A Lifeline for Babies in Crisis – Featuring Monica Kelsey
This episode is a rebroadcast of an earlier release. Be sure to listen to Melanie Luttrell’s powerful new update at the beginning.
In this powerful episode, Marcus and Melanie sit down with Monica Kelsey, founder and Executive Director of Safe Haven Baby Boxes, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing infant abandonment by providing mothers in crisis a safe, legal, and anonymous option to surrender their newborns.
Monica’s journey is deeply personal. Born after her teenage mother was raped and hidden away during pregnancy, Monica was abandoned at birth. Her life story has fueled her passion to advocate for infants like herself and to create compassionate solutions for birth mothers who face unthinkable challenges. Through Safe Haven Baby Boxes, Monica is on a mission to ensure that no child is abandoned unsafely, and no mother is left without options.
We also explore Monica's role as a firefighter and paramedic, where she has firsthand experience with the life-saving impact of Safe Haven laws. Her dedication to working with first responders has been crucial in creating awareness and ensuring these boxes are accessible nationwide.
Tune in as Monica shares her inspiring story, the incredible work her organization is doing, and how Safe Haven Baby Boxes are making a difference—one life at a time.
In This Episode You Will Hear:
• I grew up adopted, but I never knew the back story. (6:43 )
• I joined [the U.S. Navy] and got my love for firefighting there. (7:47)
• I never longed for love. (8:42)
• I just called [my biological mother] and she says “I’ve been waiting for your call.” (11:37)
• I always wanted that connection of “Hey, she does that, and I do that.” (12:38)
• The question comes up: “Who’s my biological father?” And she just got up and walked out. (12:41)
• If abortion was available in 1972, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here today. (14:37)
• I had to come to grips with the fact that I was whisked into this world by violence, and then thrown away like trash. (16:10)
• I had to go back to my faith because I had stumbled away from it.(16:17)
• The more I started reading scripture, the more it started pointing to my life. (16:31)
• Controversy is horrible around the baby boxes. (20:47)
• We launched the very first baby box in April; 30 days later our son was in a deadly accident. (23:54)
• [Melanie] The thought of putting a baby in a box is crazy; but the box of putting a baby in a dumpster is crazier. (28:57)
• At the end of the day, education is gonna be the key. (37:14)
• [Melanie] Q: What’s the worst state of baby abandonment? A: Texas.(37:45)
• The foster care system is a mess. (41:07)
• You pull a dead infant from a dumpster, you’re going to start looking for a solution.(46:27)
Support Monica:
- IG: https://www.instagram.com/safehavenbabyboxes/
- https://www.shbb.org/
-https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5PQX9JG5U3gSwcIAciYCPQ
- https://www.tiktok.com/@safehavenbabyboxes?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
Support TNQ
- IG: team_neverquit , marcusluttrell , melanieluttrell , huntero13
- https://www.patreon.com/teamneverquit
Sponsors:
- Navyfederal.org
- Dripdrop.com/TNQ
- mengotomars.com [Team Never Quit]
- bubsnaturals.com [Promo code TNQ]
- davidprotein.com/TNQ
- mizzenandmain.com [Promo code: TNQ20]
- masterclass.com/TNQ
- ShopMando.com [Promo code: TNQ]
- Tractorsupply.com/hometownheroes
- meetfabiric.com/TNQ
- Prizepicks (TNQ)
- armslist.com/TNQ
- PXGapparel.com/TNQ
- bruntworkwear.com/TNQ
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- stopboxusa.com {TNQ}
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- greenlight.com/TNQ
- drinkAG1.com/TNQ
- Hims.com/TNQ
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | People across the country are feeling all warm and fuzzy about their heat pumps. |
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| 0:12.0 | The government grant was the help we needed to start upgrading. |
| 0:16.0 | You get a lovely, steady temperature. |
| 0:18.0 | Walking around without waste slippers are you? |
| 0:20.0 | Feel all warm and fuzzy inside with a seven and a half thousand pound government grant towards |
| 0:24.7 | your heat pump at gov.uk.ukes slash clean energy. Eligibility criteria applies the website for |
| 0:29.5 | details. Starting a health journey can feel overwhelming, but MedExpress offers a simple and supportive |
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| 0:42.6 | Begin with our short online consultation, reviewed by our UK registered clinicians, to see if you're eligible for options to help you manage your weight with confidence. There's no pressure |
| 0:46.8 | and no in-person appointments. Everything happens online at your pace. If eligible, treatment is |
| 0:51.9 | delivered discreetly to your door, and you'll have access to ongoing personalized support from our clinical team throughout. MedExpress has helped more than 1.5 million UK customers since 2013, providing clinically backed care designed to help you feel more confident in your health choices. When you're ready to take that first step, visit medexpress.co.com. |
| 1:11.3 | U.K.R. podcast to learn more. |
| 1:14.8 | The Team NeverFood podcast is proudly brought to you by Navy Federal Credit Union. |
| 1:19.8 | Navy Federal's new homebuyer's choice loan has down payment options as low at 0% with no |
| 1:26.3 | required private mortgage insurance. Make sure to go check it out |
| 1:30.2 | at navyfederal.org. Some of you might have already heard this episode. This came out two years ago |
| 1:36.9 | when we met Monica from Safe Haven Baby Box for the first time. We are re-releasing this episode today |
| 1:43.8 | because we have a huge celebration. We want you to |
... |
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