Update from the original poster: “I was quite relieved to receive a private message from the man that asked my daughter to babysit yesterday by the tot lot. He was very nice and apologetic for causing any concern. I apologized for thinking the worst. Back to enjoying my summer!”
This was posted on the Nextdoor listserv and reprinted here with the author’s permission. It occurred near the intersection of Hopkins and Blenheim roads.
My 13 year old daughter was walking home past the tot lot tonight at 6:00 pm and a man approached her to see if she could babysit for him. He said he was in desperate need of a babysitter so he could take someone to the hospital. Luckily, she came straight home. Just wanted to share this since it seemed suspicious to me.
Kudos to the girl for not engaging with the man and for telling her mother (who then called police). Hopefully it was nothing nefarious, but I agree that it sounds suspicious.