FISHERSVILLE, Va. (WHSV) – Augusta Health’s Childcare Center recently announced that starting in February 2026, all children of non-team members must find other care providers. After last week’s town hall meeting with hospital leadership and an online petition was created, changes were made to that deadline.
On Oct. 24, Matthew Falwell and other parents of attendees of Augusta Health’s Childcare Center received emails regarding the status of their children’s enrollment. This comes after the initial announcement sent to families on Oct. 20, which featured the Feb. 1, 2026, deadline.
“This is the one thing that you thought you could depend on, because your kids are the most important thing to you in the world,” Falwell said. “They have given us three months’ notice, which for a lot of things is great, but for child care, it is often not enough. My wife has reached out to a bunch of places already and they have seven-, eight-kid long waitlists, so they are not going to have a spot for us come Feb. 1.”
A spokesperson with Augusta Health sent the following statement, stating in part:
“All Kindergarten Prep and School-Age children will be allowed to remain enrolled through August 4, 2026. Augusta Health recognizes that starting school in August is a significant milestone, and this change best supports children’s emotional well-being and sense of stability in these two programs.”
This means all children in younger classrooms are still on the February deadline, including families like Falwell’s and Andy Shipman’s.
“Our child is not going into kindergarten next year, so that second letter meant nothing to me,” Shipman said.
Meanwhile, Falwell and his wife have 18-month-old twins and will need to find a replacement for day care in the next three months.
“This is the only day care provider that they have had,” Falwell said. “They have made friends there, we have made friends there, it is a fantastic community, and what they are doing in response to the feedback does not change anything about our situation.”
Parents added that during this process, they hoped for better communication and support.
“They provided support for families that are being banished, and that support was to contact Bright Horizons, not Augusta Health, so that they can help us find a new day care. There are only a handful of day cares in the area. As parents, we all know the day cares, we don’t need help finding a new day care,” Shipman said. “We all have Google, we all can find a day care. That is not the support we needed.”
That statement acknowledging the “provided support” from Augusta Health stated in part:
“To support families during this transition, Augusta Health Childcare Center will provide the following: early departure fees will be waived, tuition will be prorated based on the child’s last day of care, and there will be no re-registration fee for any affected families still enrolled. If families need help finding a new childcare location, Bright Horizons can provide personalized support to meet their family’s needs.
“…Over time, the program grew to include families from the community, and Augusta Health recognizes how important those relationships have become. However, the center now needs to go back to its original purpose as a benefit for Augusta Health employees.”
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