SHAMOKIN - Parents of children enrolled at Jesus' Lil Helpers Daycare voiced support for the woman whose son is charged with using and selling heroin inside the building during off-hours.
Kelly L. Ebersole said her son, Ryan Varano, did not have keys or permission to access the building.
She said she plans to press charges against her son and Christian Kehler, who faces the same charges after he overdosed and nearly died Saturday night in the day care.
A third man, Frederick Russo, was not at the day care at the time of the overdose, but is being charged in connection with the trio's plan to buy heroin in Philadelphia and resell it in Shamokin.
"(Varano) had no right to be in here," Ebersole said. "He had no right to bring anybody in there."
A neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous due to the nature of the incident, said she had noticed traffic in and out of the building a couple years ago, but thought it had stopped.
On Monday the day care was open. Ebersole said she was trying to notify parents of the incident as she saw them. She typically cares for 13 children, ages 1 to 12.
"There's no reason for me not to be open. There's no damage here. There's no hazards here," she said. "If I were to find anything like that I would have never opened."
Chris Burn's daughter has been in Ebersole's care for several years and he enrolled his younger child a few months ago. He said he was not considering removing his children from the day care.
"I don't have a concern of keeping them here," Burn said after picking up his children Monday afternoon. "She did everything necessary."
Another parent who asked to remain anonymous said she and the other parents planned to support Ebersole.
"I feel bad for her. She can lose her business with what (Varano) did," she said. "How can she control what happened?"
The woman said her child had been in Ebersole's care for three years and that she was "devastated" when she heard the news.
"She nurtures those children," she said.
She noted Ebersole's promise to press charges against Varano and Kehler, indicating that while she believes Ebersole is "a good woman," she is still concerned for her own child. She said her child had been feeling ill lately, and the news made her question if drugs caused his malaise.
"We have to make sure our kids are safe," she said.
Ebersole's day care is licensed through the state Department of Human Services (DPW). She said she's been in business for 17 years and checked with the proper authorities before opening Monday morning.
Cpl. Bryan Primerano said in the criminal complaint that he contacted DPW and Children and Youth to notify them of the incident. Calls to DPW were not returned Monday.
