KENDALL, Fla. – Six-year-old Jaryon Mendez is home for the holidays – but in the most unfortunate way.
The little one is autistic, and is currently missing out on school and therapy because the learning center he's enrolled in unexpectedly closed.
"The children were supposed to be off next week, so now this entire week, I haven't had a place to have my child in," Katherine Navarro, Jaryon’s mother, said.
Navarro said her calls to the Angels Learning Elementary School in the Hammocks have gone unanswered.
Last week a letter was sent to parents that said a lack of payments from Medicaid forced them to close earlier than expected.
The letter also said that the school does plan to re-open in January – but Navarro is wary about that timeline.
"I’ve been calling, and I even went over and there's nobody there to answer any questions," she said. "I was actually looking forward to a Christmas show. I feel very cheated. My son didn't get to participate in any Christmas activity."
The school, which is located off Hammocks Boulevard and Southwest 152nd Avenue is closed and no one at the center was willing to talk on-camera when approached by Local 10 News crews.
A woman who claimed to be the school director hung up on Local 10 News when she was asked for details about the missed payments.
"The children were supposed to be off next week, so now this entire week, I haven't had a place to have my child in," Navarro said.
As a result of the closure, the child's mother has missed week of work to look after her son.
"I'm a single mom with two boys and this has hit my hard because I can't work, I have to care for my child a week earlier than anticipated having to stay home with him," she said.