Keri's Couch: Jo from The Baby Home talks trend of baby dumping over lockdown
According to reports, there has been an increase in the number of mothers dumping their babies during lockdown. Jo Teunissen from 'The Baby Home' spoke to Keri about their safe haven - which is a home for abandoned children ages 0-4.
One of the biggest issues we face in South Africa is that of our country’s many vulnerable children. The Baby Home is a fully registered Place of Safety that cares for abandoned or orphaned babies and babies given up for adoption.
On Keri's Couch this week, Jo Teunissen speaks about how she became a mother to so many souls when the NPO was founded five years ago.
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"About five years ago we [herself and her husband Bjorn] had decided that we were going to adopt a little boy that we had met at another home in Durban, and it was quite a difficult adoption process. We reached out to Justin Foxton from 'The Peace Agency' and he helped us with the adoption. He started telling me all these wonderful things about 'The Baby Home' and how they run," Jo tells Keri.
Although the initial idea was to adopt one baby, Jo's love for children inspired her to open a baby home just four months after adopting their last born.
The Baby Home currently has three branches; Durban North, Umlazi, and Hammarsdale.
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Volunteers are a BIG part of the success of the Baby Home, as they love having people from the community pop in for a visit with the carers and babies to spend time loving them and bringing joy into their lives! However, with lockdown, this has not been the case.
"We rely hugely on the community in terms of support and donations, and volunteers come and help us here with the children, so that was a huge adjustment," Jo says.
As lockdown continued, The Baby Home was inundated with calls and messages of mothers who were struggling with food and nappies for their children and needed help. This led to an increase in depression as more mothers lost their jobs and could not cope with the stress, further abandoning their children - according to Jo.
Listen to the full interview for more:
Address: 11 Pigeonwood Close, Glen Anil
Tel: 082 773 0781
IMAGE CREDIT: Facebook/TheBabyHome
Catch up with moments from the latest edition of Darren, Keri, and Sky below: