Dear parents, caring for your children is probably the most important job in any society. Because of this, all parents should be required to take a course that prepares them to be good parents. Raising children is an important job, and looking after yourself helps you do the job well. That’s because looking after yourself physically, mentally and emotionally helps you give your children what they need to grow and thrive.
But, unfortunately, this was not the case with this 8-year-old girl who was discovered last week begging for food at a discount store: ‘I’m hungry, my mom and dad don’t want me no more.’ Both parents, Ryan and Elia, were arrested and charged with neglect of a child after their daughter jumped out of a window clutching her teddy bear where she was soon after discovering begging for food at a Dollar Store. Associates at the discount store raised the alarm after the un-named child walked into the outlet barefoot, holding her teddy bear pleading for food and water.
The girl allegedly told store staff that her parents refused to feed her and often told her she was unwanted. She had only eaten a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in the last three days, given to her by one of her siblings. One of the store workers, who has not been named, told WOWK-TV: ‘The little girl, she came through the store, just walked straight up to us was like, ‘I’m hungry, my mom and dad don’t want me no more, do you have anything I can eat?”
According to a criminal complaint, the child reportedly told staff that she escaped through her home’s window because her parents didn’t allow her to go outside. The store staff provided her with snacks while they called police. Authorities found that the parents were unaware of the child’s absence and discovered drug paraphernalia at the family home. A survey of the home led authorities finding enough ‘food in the cupboards, food pantry, refrigerator, and freezer for the entire family.’ The girl told deputies her parents told her she had an attitude and when they tell her she’s not being good they don’t want her, the criminal complaint said. The girl and her three siblings were taken out of the home. This incident remains under investigation.
