In a state where so many political figures make a big show about how much they care about babies, some communities are walking the walk and providing an important option for desperate parents with nowhere else to turn.

Last year, Lebanon installed a Safe Haven Baby Box at one of its fire stations.

At the time, it was the 10th such box to be installed in Ohio. On Dec. 2, it was used for the first time.

According to a press release from the Lebanon Police Department, the city’s communications center received an alarm at 3:34 p.m. from the newborn safety incubator. When police and fire units arrived, they found a female infant who was immediately taken to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Warren County Children Services is handling the situation from there.

Contrast the courage it must have taken for the parent of that infant to take advantage of a safe, legal way to try to do better for their child with another news story from that same day.

In Bryan, police were pursuing a driver who was so reckless in his attempt to flee from police that, according to a social media post by the Bryan Police Department, “an infant was ejected from the moving car … Due to hazardous weather conditions and high speeds, the pursuit was terminated.”

In fact, there were two children in the vehicle at the start of the chase. The department said both children have since been found, and the ejected infant, too, was transported to a hospital — this time in Toledo, where the child is reported to be in fair condition.

In its press release, the Lebanon Police Department reminded that under Ohio Revised Code, “a parent may voluntarily deliver the parent’s child who is not older than 30 days, without intent to return for the child, to any of the following,” and goes on to list three options, including a newborn safety incubator.

Safe Haven’s motto is “Hope begins here: A lifeline for infants, a beacon of hope for parents.” So far, 10 Ohio communities have understood the importance of bringing that hope to local parents. Many more should consider doing the same.