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Background: News footage of the Creative Beginnings day care center in Lenoir, N.C. (WBTV). Inset (left): Maddy, the 16-month-old who died on her first day at Creative Beginnings (GoFundMe). Inset (right): Alexandra Coffey (Caldwell County Detention Center).
A North Carolina toddler was put down for a nap on her first day of day care on Monday — and her mother got the call that no parent ever wants to receive.
The 16-month-old girl, identified only as “Maddy,” was dropped off at the day care on Monday by her mother on what was reportedly a “heartbreaking, nerve-wracking” day, according to a GoFundMe page started by a family friend. According to reporting by local CBS affiliate WBTV, the mother — whose name was not provided to the public — received updates about Maddy and another one of her children while they were at the Creative Beginnings day care center in Lenoir, North Carolina. Then, she got another call that Maddy never woke up from her nap.
Emergency medical services arrived at Creative Beginnings and attempted lifesaving aid for Maddy, which continued as she was rushed to a hospital. She was pronounced dead after she arrived.
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According to WBTV, the Lenoir Police Department began an investigation into Maddy’s death immediately. An autopsy was conducted by the county medical examiner, which prompted police to treat Maddy’s death as a criminal matter.
On Wednesday, police charged 29-year-old Alexandra Coffey, a Creative Beginnings employee, with involuntary manslaughter. She was arrested without incident and taken into custody at the Caldwell County Detention Center on a $500,000 secured bond. Coffey was scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, according to local news radio station WHKY.
WBTV reported that Creative Beginnings also had its license suspended by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. In the order forcing the center to shut its doors by the end of business on Wednesday, the agency stated that the suspension was needed “based on the agency’s findings that the public health, safety, or welfare requires emergency action.”
According to WBTV, Creative Beginnings had been cited for safety violations related to CPR and first aid three times during unscheduled inspections, but had corrected the problems in September 2024. At the time of Maddy’s death, Creative Beginnings’ license had a five-star ranking. Police said that the day care center was cooperating in the investigation.
