A toddler found wandering around a downtown Philadelphia park late at night was reunited temporarily with his homeless parents who said they were sleeping when he wandered off.
The 2-year-old boy was found barefoot in the park about 10:30 p.m. Friday, according to
WCAU-TV. His parents told police they had been kicked out of a home that day and spent the night sleeping under cardboard near the city's Welcome Center.
Police said the parents contacted them when they awoke and found the boy missing.
A resident found the wandering boy and contacted a nearby transit officer. The boy was taken to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia where he was admitted for evaluation, said
WPVI-TV.
The child was wearing a green, long sleeve shirt, black running pants with a diaper, but no shoes or socks.
The parents were identified on Sunday as Angelique Roland, 27, and Michael Jones, 24.
"If I had somewhere to go, I would be there," Roland told WPVI-TV, who also had her 4-year-old daughter with them. "I am not out here on the streets with my kids on purpose."
Philly.com said the Department of Human Services took custody of both children.
Brian Jenkins, of the homeless advocacy group Chosen 300 Ministries Inc., said his organization had reached out to help the family since child's story became public.
"It doesn't make them bad parents," Jenkins told WPVI-TV. "It says they don't have what they need to be able to survive. Today we're actually launching a $12,000 campaign to be able to raise the necessary funds to get this family into a place, hopefully support them for at least a year."
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