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Safe sleep in its simplest form
 

About Us

Parents have the opportunity to protect their children by both staying informed about potential medical risks and having access to necessary resources.  Touching Young Lives strives to ensure the health and well-being of infants and children through providing public information on best practices for infant and child care.  In addition, we sell and donate Portable Alternative Cribs to give babies from all socio-economic classes a safe place to sleep.

Feel free to browse the site and take a moment to #TouchAYoungLifeToday!

 
 
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How We Began

In 2011, Shantell Roberts suffered a tragic loss when her one year old daughter died due to pneumonia.  Her baby was “diagnosed” at a prominent health facility as just having a “viral infection”– also known as a common cold.  She died 48 hours after her healthcare visit.  Her official autopsy results indicated that she died from MRSA pneumonia. 

Shantell founded Touching Young Lives, Inc. to provide infants with a safe place to sleep in the simplest form.  Her goal is to ensure the health and well-being of infants and children across socio-economic lines through the use of  Portable Alternative Cribs (P.A.Cs). 

 
 
Testimonials

"Marqevia Johnson uses a Pack ‘N Play portable crib for her 2-month-old son, Cody, to sleep in, but often puts him down for naps in what is essentially a cardboard box. She likes the box bed because it’s small and simple and easy to carry."

December 2017 / Baltimore Sun

"This year, 12 infants in the city died while sleeping -- a frightening increase compared with 7 deaths in 2016."

December 2017 / WYPR “On the Record” with Sheilah Kast

"I've been in maternal and child health advocacy for at least the last 6 years after the death of my daughter because I never wanted another family to go through that traumatic experience," said Roberts, the founder & CEO of Touching Young Lives, Inc."

May 2017 / ABC2 News

"It's a lightweight box designed to keep babies well-positioned for safe sleep, as a means of preventing Sudden Infant Death Syndrome."

November 2017 / Fox45 News

“'I want to show that anybody, at any economic level can use this baby box,' she says. 'My mission has always been to prevent others from experiencing the same pain that I did.'" -Shantell Roberts

August 2017 / Baltimore Magazine

"The project aims to encourage safe sleep for infants and is a spinoff of a baby box concept seen in Finland. About 40,000 boxes are given out each year and the program is believed to be one of the contributing factors to Finland's low infant mortality rates."

April 2017 / Baltimore Business Journal

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