By Marlene Quaroni - Florida Catholic
Photographer: MARLENE QUARONI | FC
Father David Smith, Catholic Hospice chaplain, leads the graveside ceremony in the Garden of Innocence at Caballero Rivero Woodlawn Cemetery for a baby girl abandoned in Clearwater.
MIAMI | The tiny white casket that bore the body of a newborn baby girl was not much bigger than a shoe box. The baby was found dead March 15 at 7:20 a.m., wrapped only in a towel, outside Clearwater Fire House 49 on a night when temperatures dropped into the low 40s. Her umbilical cord was still attached.
�We don�t know why God allows things like this to happen,� said Father David Smith, Catholic Hospice chaplain, during a graveside ceremony April 16 in the Garden of Innocence at Caballero Rivero Woodlawn South Cemetery.
A little red heart with the words �loved and cherished� adorned the casket.
�As people of faith, we celebrate life as precious. That�s why we named this baby girl Precious,� Father Smith said.
She was brought to Miami for burial by Nick Silverio, the founder of A Safe Haven for Newborns, a Florida non-profit dedicated to saving the lives of unwanted newborns. The loss of his wife, Gloria, in a car accident in 1999 inspired Silverio to create an organization to help those she loved: children. Gloria Silverio is buried at Woodlawn South. Although the couple, married 32 years, was childless, Silverio has 14 godchildren.
Woodlawn Park Cemeteries donated the Garden of Innocence to Safe Haven. It has 18 small plots and a tombstone bearing the group�s logo, its phone number and the words �the most innocent and helpless among us.� Two other babies are buried there: One was stillborn and the other died of a virus. Silverio is grateful to the cemetery but said he hopes the other 15 plots remain vacant.
�The law in Florida allows a mother to leave her child at a hospital or fire station up to seven days after birth, no questions asked,� he said. �There are Safe Haven signs at those facilities, but that doesn�t mean a baby can be left there alone. We have been sending out new signs that add the words, �only when left with a staff member�.�
Silverio, a fourth degree Knight of Columbus and a Knight in the Order of Malta, attends Christ the King Church in Perrine. Ten of his fellow parishioners joined him and Father Smith to celebrate the life of Precious at the cemetery.
Since Silverio created Safe Haven, 190 babies have been rescued from abandonment in Florida and 5,023 girls and women have been assisted in their time of crisis. Silverio said the organization gets about eight calls a day at its 24/7, multilingual, statewide, referral helpline, whose aim is to assist pregnant girls and women in crisis.
The number is 1-877-767-BABY (2229). Those wishing to volunteer or donate should call 305-882-1304, ext. 103.
�We are the safety net,� Silverio said. �We provide quick, confidential one-on-one assistance accessing our extensive statewide database. We assist pregnant girls and women as they make their decision in the best interest of their baby and themselves, whether with counseling, parenting, health related issues, or confidentially placing their newborn with a Safe Haven.�
There are similar Safe Haven laws in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Safe Haven has created a 10-minute video informing middle and high school students throughout Florida that help is available for someone involved in a crisis pregnancy.
�We don�t know why God allows things like this to happen,� said Father David Smith, Catholic Hospice chaplain, during a graveside ceremony April 16 in the Garden of Innocence at Caballero Rivero Woodlawn South Cemetery.
Photographer: MARLENE QUARONI | FC
Lenys Klumpp, a Safe Haven for Newborns board member, places a potted flower at the gravesite of baby Precious.
�As people of faith, we celebrate life as precious. That�s why we named this baby girl Precious,� Father Smith said.
She was brought to Miami for burial by Nick Silverio, the founder of A Safe Haven for Newborns, a Florida non-profit dedicated to saving the lives of unwanted newborns. The loss of his wife, Gloria, in a car accident in 1999 inspired Silverio to create an organization to help those she loved: children. Gloria Silverio is buried at Woodlawn South. Although the couple, married 32 years, was childless, Silverio has 14 godchildren.
Woodlawn Park Cemeteries donated the Garden of Innocence to Safe Haven. It has 18 small plots and a tombstone bearing the group�s logo, its phone number and the words �the most innocent and helpless among us.� Two other babies are buried there: One was stillborn and the other died of a virus. Silverio is grateful to the cemetery but said he hopes the other 15 plots remain vacant.
�The law in Florida allows a mother to leave her child at a hospital or fire station up to seven days after birth, no questions asked,� he said. �There are Safe Haven signs at those facilities, but that doesn�t mean a baby can be left there alone. We have been sending out new signs that add the words, �only when left with a staff member�.�
Silverio, a fourth degree Knight of Columbus and a Knight in the Order of Malta, attends Christ the King Church in Perrine. Ten of his fellow parishioners joined him and Father Smith to celebrate the life of Precious at the cemetery.
Photographer: MARLENE QUARONI | FC
A t-shirt bears the logo of A Safe Haven For Newborns, established by Christ the King parishioner Nick Silverio in memory of his wife, Gloria.
Photographer: MARLENE QUARONI | FC
A t-shirt bears the logo of A Safe Haven For Newborns, established by Christ the King parishioner Nick Silverio in memory of his wife, Gloria.
The number is 1-877-767-BABY (2229). Those wishing to volunteer or donate should call 305-882-1304, ext. 103.
�We are the safety net,� Silverio said. �We provide quick, confidential one-on-one assistance accessing our extensive statewide database. We assist pregnant girls and women as they make their decision in the best interest of their baby and themselves, whether with counseling, parenting, health related issues, or confidentially placing their newborn with a Safe Haven.�
There are similar Safe Haven laws in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Safe Haven has created a 10-minute video informing middle and high school students throughout Florida that help is available for someone involved in a crisis pregnancy.
