CHESTER, Va. — When Andrea Dungee first started sending her then 1-year-old daughter to Fortress of God Childcare in Chester, she loved it.
“It was great. I didn’t have issues,” Dungee said.
But, by late 2024, Dungee was so concerned about what she saw as health and safety issues there that she filed a complaint with the Virginia Department of Social Services.
“She expanded the daycare and that’s when I started noticing things here and there that were a little concerning,” Dungee said.
Chesterfield police said a 3-year-old child from the daycare was found wandering in a busy road next to it on Friday.
Watch: Toddler found in traffic on Route 10 is safe thanks to quick-thinking guardian angel
On Dec. 23, a state inspector visited the daycare and found a number of violations.
Among them:
- Staff in a preschool classroom had not checked children in for attendance
- Exposed wires, crumbling drywall and peeling paint were accessible to children
- The door into the infant area was missing the handle lever.
“We weren’t allowed past the entrance area but I know I saw several times door handles would come off when they would come into another room, or when I would exit out the building the actual door handle would fall off,” Dungee said.
The inspector also observed a 6-month-old baby sitting in a highchair without the protective belt fastened.
And, despite the center having a temporary staff-to-child ration waiver, they still did not have enough staff supervising 11 children in the infant room.
“I saw too many times kids running in and out of rooms,” Dungee said. “I never knew what staff was there. It was always, 'Oh this is your new teacher, this is new your teacher.'”
Dungee showed us a message that the administrator of the daycare, Monique Ede, sent to families about the complaint.
In it, Ede said she would have to close the 2-year-old classroom due to being out of ratio.
“It says if you are not happy you are free to leave. I am not holding no one hostages,” Dungee said. “It’s unprofessional.”
Dungee moved her daughter to another daycare, but when she saw the news last week about a child from Fortress of God Childcare being found in a nearby road, she said she had to speak out.
“I think it was multiple people who was at fault for this situation,” Dungee said. “Who checked when she was expanding and said ok you’re allowed to have children in these locations.”
Fortress of God operates under a religious exemption, not a license. Provided they complete the proper paperwork and documentation, the religious exemption must be granted.
Exemptions can be revoked. It is not a quick process, with appeal times guaranteed for the facility, the scheduling of a hearing officer, conducting the hearing, and the hearing officer to make a decision. It could take months to revoke an exemption.
According to the DSS website, their exemption status ended in early December, but a spokesperson for VDOE said they have since completed their correct paperwork and renewed their exemption.
A VDOE spokesperson said it has an open an active investigation into the facility.
We are still waiting to hear back from DSS.
Chesterfield police said they are still investigating last week’s incident with the wandering child.
And, the Chesterfield Fire Department said multiple violations were found at the daycare on Friday, but they are not releasing any details due to the ongoing criminal investigation.
In an email, Ede said in part:
"The impact of this incident has been devastating. We are left to deal with the embarrassment of being publicly scrutinized under false pretenses, resulting in both emotional and financial repercussions.”
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