Editorial roundup

April 13 The Daily Times of Maryville

Tenn. ‘Safe Haven’ law

The annual “Rock the Cradle” fundraiser for A Secret Safe Place for Newborns of Tennessee is one of those times that reminds us why we’re inspired by tragedy born of innocence. Why people wipe away tears and say “never again, not if I can help it.”

One of those people who made “never again” her mantra was the late Anna C. Irwin, a Daily Times reporter who covered the story of a 14-year-old girl from Townsend who was so afraid people would find out she was pregnant that she abandoned her newborn baby girl in a shed.

Anna covered the story like she covered every story, straight up and full speed ahead, including reporting on the decision to charge the teen with first-degree murder. She just wrote the facts when the infant was found dead in a wooden box in October 2000. That didn’t mean she wasn’t affected by it. She wrote the news without fear or favor, but she had feelings. In May

2004, Anna wrote these words: “Imagine being 13 years old or 15, 17 or

19. You’re pregnant. You’re not a bad girl, but you made a serious mistake, and now you don’t know what to do. You’ve tried to pretend there wasn’t a baby on the way and managed to hide the situation, but as the birth approaches, you are faced with the question of what will happen to the baby.

“What are the options and how can you find out about the possibilities without revealing your secret? How can you be sure your secret and your baby, once it arrives, will be safe?

“Answers are available at A Secret Safe Place for Newborns of Tennessee Inc. help line, 982-4224. All calls are confidential, never recorded and not connected to a caller identification system.”

Anna died three years later, but that phone number is still good. So is the cause. To help make sure A Secret Safe Place for Newborns of Tennessee is always ready when needed, let’s “Rock the Cradle.”