Families in Camden left reeling after Respond Inc. child care centers suddenly close

We begin with a sudden closure of child care centers in Camden. Several daycares abruptly closed, leaving parents and staff in limbo. Respond, Inc. Child Development had been around for half a century, serving the South Jersey community. Action News reporter Katie Catro is live in Camden now with more on what happened. Katie. Yeah, Sarah and Christy, today we found parents and staff emotional and frustrated inside the building saying they were given no warning and now they're left scrambling looking for a plan B. I'm just sad because we didn't get a warning. It just happened. Respond, Inc. Child Development has shut down all three of its daycare centers in Camden, ending more than 50 years of service to the community. Today, emotions are running high as parents and staff are left searching for answers. First, I'm confused. Staff say they received an email earlier this week informing them the centers were closing. News that came as a complete shock. We're operating, you know, like as if everything is on the up, not on the down. Even the Camden City School District says it was caught off guard by the sudden closure. In a statement, the district says, in part, as soon as we were made aware, our early childhood department moved quickly to support impacted families. District staff contacted every affected family directly the same day and offered immediate placement in one of our district-run early childhood programs. If they cared anything about the children, you wouldn't abruptly have closed the centers down. In a joint statement from the board of directors and executive leadership of Respond, Inc., the organization says the decision was not unilateral or impulsive. Quote, continuing operations without the ability to reliably meet payroll obligations, maintain required insurance coverage, and ensure fully compliant learning environments would have placed children, families, and staff at unacceptable risk. But staff say the way the news was delivered added to the heartbreak. The way that we found out is the most disheartening thing, and it could have been handled a lot better, I think. And at this time, the Camden City School District says it still has available seats in its early childhood programs. Reporting live in Camden, Katie Catro, Channel 6 Action News. Sarah and Christy? Yeah, that's certainly frustrating for those parents and staff. Katie, thank you.