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I thought the name thing was weird too but then I thought maybe Jackie is a nickname for Jessica?
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I have never heard Jackie being a nickname for Jessica, but maybe she did think someone would link her to the school fire....Maybe she didn't even use her real name for her daycare license and maybe a different soc, maybe that's why they can't find the fire under her name, but then I guess they would have figured that out by now.Comment
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My heart breaks for the kid's families. this is just oh, so sad.Comment
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i've been wondering the saaame thing about her name, but it seemed so unimportant to ask when this first started!
i bet it's her mom's name. there has been mention of her dad and her brother, but no mom. you know everyone likes to name people/places/things after dead loved ones.Comment
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Parents Met Day Care Owner At Stores, Church
Jessica Tata Charged With 14 Counts After Fatal Fire
POSTED: Monday, March 7, 2011
UPDATED: 8:46 am CST March 8, 20
HOUSTON -- All of the parents who left their children at a day care the day it caught fire, killing four children, said nearly the same thing about the day care owner, Jessica Tata.
"She said I can trust her. That's the last thing she said to me before I left her," mother Kyndell Stradford said.
"I trusted her to take care of my babies. They are my life, my children," mother Tiffany Dickerson said.
Tata, 22, is an international fugitive, accused of leaving seven children alone to go to a nearby Target for 13 minutes.
Tata was the day care provider at a home in the 2800 block of Crestpark at Waypark when a fire broke out Feb. 24 shortly before 1:30 p.m. The house served as a day care facility called Jackie's Child Care. While she was away, a pan of hot oil left burning on a stove sparked the fatal fire.
Four felony manslaughter charges were filed against Tata on Friday. The Harris County District Attorney's Office said she has been charged with 14 felonies, including seven counts of reckless injury to a child and three counts of child abandonment.
The new charges are likely to help extradition proceedings if Tata is found in Nigeria, where she is believed to have fled.
Three children, Elizabeth Kojah, of Cypress, and Kendyll Stradford, of Katy, both 20 months old; and Shomari Dickerson, 3, died the day of the fire. A fourth child, Elias Castillo, died two days later.
Each parent remembers how and where they met the woman who said she would take care of their babies.
"She came up to me at Walmart. I had two jobs," mother Keisha Brown said.
Brown was looking for a flexible and loving place for her 16-month-old son, Elias Castillo. She said Tata seemed to be the perfect fit because she offered a 24-hour day care service and was open on Saturdays.
"She said she would teach sign language and taught Spanish, praise and worship. I liked that," she said.
Tata also approached Tiffany Dickerson at a Walmart, and after visiting the day care, Dickerson said she was sure her children, 3-year-old Shomari and 2-year-old Mikala, were in good hands.
Elizabeth Kojah's parents met Tata at church. They said she volunteered with the child care ministry at Braeswood Assembly of God during services.
"One of those days, I went to pick up my daughter. She said, 'I have home care. I teach Christian values to kids,'" mother Betty Kojah said.
Kojah said she even noticed a positive change in her 20-month-old daughter after attending Tata's home day care for the first few days.
"She came back praying over her food. She said Jessica taught her that. I didn't," Kojah said.
Kendyll Stradford's mother found Tata through an ad, but she said she was sold when she met her.
"My mom found the phone number on the van. When we met her, she was very sweet and open to any questions," she said.
But what the parents thought was the perfect place for their little ones turned out to be their worst nightmare.
"I have a wish that it never happened," said Elizabeth Kojah's dad.
"He was all I was living for and kept me going. Everything I did was for him," Keisha Brown said.
"My poor son. I can't give him an open casket because he's so badly burned," Tiffany Dickerson said.
After hearing that Tata may have fled to Nigeria before she could be questioned or arrested, the trust the parents had for Tata turned into anger and an even deeper pain.
"Why is she lying? Why can't she just be remorseful?" Tiffany Dickerson asked.
"I just need to know what happened," Keisha Brown said.
After such a tragedy, the nonprofit organization Collaborative For Children wants to help other parents seeking child care.
CEO Carol Shattuck said it is essential for parents to spend an entire day visiting the day care before enrolling. She also said parents should not be afraid to ask about experience and proof of certifications and references.
Previous Stories:
March 5, 2011: Fourth Child Laid To Rest After Daycare Fire
March 4, 2011: Tata Faces New Manslaughter Charges
March 3, 2011: Funerals For Day Care Fire Victims Begin
March 2, 2011: HFD Admits Mistakes In Letting Day Care Owner Get Away
March 1, 2011: 9 New Charges Filed Against Tata
March 1, 2011: Investigators: Day Care Owner Flees Country
February 28, 2011: Day Care Owner Flees To Nigeria
February 26, 2011: Fourth Child Dies After Day Care Fire
February 25, 2011: Investigators Suspect Kids Left Alone At Burning Day Care
February 25, 2011: Children Killed In Day Care Fire Identified
February 24, 2011: 3 Children Die In Day Care Fire- Unless otherwise stated, all my posts are personal opinion and worth what you paid for them.
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"essential for parents to spend an entire day visiting the day care before enrolling"
How would you feel if a new parent asked to spend an entire day with you before enrolling?Comment
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I don't know exactly why this story in particular strikes such a cord with me; but even two weeks later I still cry when I read the update articles.
My heart breaks for these parents. I have such hatred inside for this daycare provider. How could she be such a coward and flee before the DA could file the charges? How could she even think about leaving 7 little babies alone? How could she be so negligent as to leave them alone in a house with a pot of oil burning on the stove? I just don't get it. Part of me thinks there is still so much more to this story that we don't know.Comment
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I guarantee there is much much more to it.
Do we still not know what she purchased? What was so important to go and leave these kids alone?Comment
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I haven't seen anything, but I would really like to know what was so dang important for her to leave those babies!! But, as others have said, there must be more to this story, and I wouldn't be surprised if the trip to the store and the fire was just a cover for something else.Comment
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I wouldn't allow it...it would be very disruptive. Here's the thing...you can spend a whole week with a provider and not know what is REALLY going on. An abusive, negligent provider isn't going to abusive and negligent when a parent is in the house. They can certainly pretend to be loving and nuturing for a day.Comment
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I totally understand why the Collaborative said this, and I think as a parent looking for daycare, I would want to spend as much time as possible at the home or center before enrolling my child. But as a provider -- it freaks me out a little. I would really have trouble with a parent spending the entire day with me before enrolling. Yes, I don't have anything to hide, but still, it would leave me alone in a house with 6 kids and a complete stranger. Not exactly the situation I want to put myself in!Comment
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