Two young boys left a playground Thursday at their Chicago-area daycare center just to be found minutes later inside a grocery store looking for stickers and suckers.
"I get a call around 4 to 4:05, my wife is crying hysterically, saying they lost our kids," said Scott Doll, father of Ari, one of the kids to walk away from the gated playground.
On Thursday morning, Ari walked away from Kiddie Academy in Oakbrook Terrace with another young boy, telling his father the two went to find stickers and suckers at Pete's Fresh Market -- about 1,000 feet away from the daycare.
Scott said the manager at the grocery store told him that employees paged for parents; but when none showed up, they kept the boys at customer service. A person from Kiddie Academy then came to take the boys from the store back to the daycare.
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The daycare noticed within 11 minutes that the boys were missing when pictures were being taken and the two were no where to be found. Kiddie Academy released the following statement:
On September 23, 2021, two children left the pre-school playground at Kiddie Academy of Oakbrook Terrace through an exterior gate. Both children were retrieved within minutes and returned safe and unharmed. We immediately notified the children’s parents and contacted DCFS to report the incident. We are currently working with DCFS in their investigation of the matter and will cooperate with any recommendations that come from their assessment.
We deeply care about the children in our care and our community. There is nothing more important than creating a nurturing and safe environment for the children in our care, and their families – it is our life’s commitment.
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Our team is dedicated to sound leadership decisions, swiftly addressing concerns, aligning with local licensing bodies and ensuring that the trust of each family is earned and maintained. We will continue to fully cooperate with local authorities during their ongoing investigation.
Scott said he's chosen to remove his children from Kiddie Academy and are looking for another daycare.
