When choosing a day care, parents have a lot of decisions to make. Things such as location and cost are important factors when finding a child care facility. But for many parents, safety is one of the most important aspects to think about when choosing a place to send their kids.
One New Jersey mom is questioning the safety of the day care facility she picked for her child. While picking up her daughter, she noticed something was off. The little one seemed to be missing some hair.
Mom Tamara Hemingway spoke with WABC about the ordeal. Her 2-year-old daughter Myla, was enrolled in Growing Kids Academy’s day care program. When she picked up the toddler on April 2, 2025, one of her braids appeared to be missing.
“Then that’s when she sent me the picture, and that’s when I saw the big bald spot in my childhood head with the braid missing,” Hemingway said.
She claimed that she sent her daughter in with four braids. When she called to check in, a staff member noticed the missing braid.
“You have to use some type of force to for a braid to be removed. It was a cornrow so it was braided down to her scalp. There’s no way that, I don’t know who could have done it, but I know for a fact she or kid would not have done that,” the mom told WABC.
A report filed with the Ocean Township Police noted that about 11 a.m., Myla’s hair seemed normal. Video footage obtained seemed to show the toddler playing with the braid. According to the reporting officer, about 11:45 a.m., a teacher is shown taking a smock off the girl’s head. Myla is then seen putting her hand to the right side of her head.
After this, police claim they didn’t see the braid anymore. However, neither the braid nor the barrettes could be located. The director of the day care told the news outlet that although it’s not clear how the braid was lost, there is no evidence showing that Myla’s hair was pulled out.
“They’re supposed to notify me. Just to even like give whatever little information you do have about the incident until you look into it further and confirm,” the mom said, per WABC. “But no one even called me to just let me know that little bit of information. I’m very upset and I’m very frustrated because this is my child. Like she’s not able to let me know what happened. And that’s the concerning part, the fact that they’re just so insensitive. Like no one even called me to check on her, see how she was doing.”
Hemingway is taking legal action against the day care.
“What troubles me about the case is that the facility deflected and they told my client various different things. They didn’t know if her child pulled it out, said Hemingway’s attorney, Marc Caswell, WABC reported. “They didn’t know what happened at first they said that they had no idea that it even happened.”
Since the incident, Hemingway has pulled Myla out of the day care. She claims the toddler is now sensitive to having her head touched.
