June 26, 2012
David C____ MD
Seattle WA
Dear Dr. C_____:
I am writing about a long overdue bill of $1524.00 owed by M___
G____ to you. I am a friend of the family. In late 2008, early 2009 you were
part of a large team that helped save M___’s life after a severe stroke. M___
was seriously ill, and with a lot of hard work, he survived. You absolutely
deserve payment for your services. Like any doctor, I know you work long hours,
nights, and weekends to help rehabilitate many lives.
I just learned about this unpaid bill from M___’s former wife,
A___ T___. A___ held vigil for M___ while he lay in a coma and took care of him
during his rehabilitation, as any spouse should. In May 2010, M___ delivered
divorce papers to A___ and ordered her to sign them. He then left the country,
returning to his home country of Ethiopia. M___ abandoned A___ with 3 children
(F____ age 2, B____ age 10 and K____ age 12), a car she couldn’t afford, and a
severe risk of becoming homeless.
On Monday June 25, this week, A___ informed me that a
collection agency, P______ Credit Bureau, represented by attorney J___ W____,
had won a court order garnishing 25% of A___’s wages at the adult family home, P___,
where she works, in order to pay your bill plus interest, court costs and legal
fees. The total amount she owes is now much larger, $2,743.58, given court
costs, interest, and lawyers’ fees. It also includes an amount of $217.50 to
Dr. D____ Y____. A___ is paid near minimum wage, and recently had her hours cut
back to 2 days a week because P___ does not have a full complement of
residents. The monthly payment of $282.43 will be a serious hardship. Since
it’s 25% of her total pay, she gets approximately $1,000 from this job to pay
the monthly expenses for herself and her 3 kids. In short, I believe it will
place the family in grave danger of homelessness
A___ and M___ took care of my Dad, who suffered from
Alzheimer’s disease, at the P___ Adult Family Home in Seattle. A___ is the sole
source of support to her 3 children. A___ and M___ took care of my Dad until he
died in July of 2008 at the age of 87. When M___ abandoned A___ and her 3
children, A___ contacted me to see if I could help. I stepped in and was able
to provide some help to get their finances stabilized. I am just a simple
software developer who works for a tech startup, but given the care my Dad had
been given, I had to help.
At the time that I learned that M___ had abandoned the
family, I also learned that there are witnesses to M___ having physically abused
A___.
Apparently because A___ and M___ were married at the time of
his illness, the debt is considered community property, so A___ and M___ are
jointly responsible for the debt, and hence the court order.
M___ returned to Seattle within the past year. Due to his
stroke, he is officially disabled, and therefore his Social Security disability
payment is apparently protected from garnishment to pay this bill. The
collection agency therefore turned to A___’s meager income. A___ does receive
$450/month from M___’s social security, $150 per child, as the only child
support she receives from M___.
A___ clearly should have addressed this issue far earlier; I
certainly wish she had told me about it long before this week. In A___’s
defense, she just did not understand the seriousness of the situation. A___
arrived in this country 15 years ago from Ethiopia in an arranged marriage with
M___. She has less than a high school education, speaks English relatively
poorly, and certainly does not have much of an understanding of American law. She
incorrectly believed that the bill was solely M___’s responsibility, since they
are divorced.
On behalf of A___, I want to apologize for all of this. A___
is trying, as best she can, to take care of her three children, and is clearly
struggling to do so.
Nevertheless the law evidently says that she’s still
responsible for the debts of her ex-husband who abused her and abandoned his children.
To my mind, although this may be legal, it is not right.
So, as a friend of A___ and her children, I’m writing you to
ask if there’s anything you can do to help. If you can, A___, her kids, and I
would be most grateful. You would help a family truly in need. I know that you
help families in need every day. This is another family that, sadly, also needs
your help.
Sincerely yours,
Christopher V. Jones (Chris)
PS: Let me share a story that explains why I chose to help A___
and her kids. My Dad was staying up all night, which is common with Alzheimer’s
patients. A___ stayed up with him many of these nights to make certain he
didn’t fall. My Dad believed he owned a car, and would get up at night to try to
drive this imaginary car. When I asked him where he wanted to go, he replied,
“I want to play tennis with Ken Winetrout.” Ken Winetrout was a tennis buddy of
my Dad’s who had passed away several years ago. This gave me an idea; geek that
I am, I owned a Nintendo Wii. Maybe my Dad could play Wii tennis. I brought the
Wii to P___, set it up, and hoped my Dad could play. It turns out he had lost
the eye-hand coordination needed even to play Wii tennis, but I certainly tried
my best. However, A___’s 10 year old daughter, B__, and I played tennis, which
my Dad thoroughly enjoyed, believing it to be a real tennis match.
A few days later, when I next visited my Dad, he was
absolutely beaming. He proudly said, “My brother was always the jock. He was
captain of the football and baseball teams. I was never as good as him at
baseball or football. But I was playing baseball!”
Although it was great to see my Dad so happy, I didn’t
believe him. Instead, I humored him, believing that his playing baseball was as
real as his imaginary car. A few minutes
later, K_, A___’s 12 year old son, bounded into the room. My Dad pointed to K_
and said, “I played baseball with the boy.” K__ had taught my Dad how to play
Wii baseball. It turns out that my Dad could manage to pitch the ball in the
game, and K__, at 12 years of age, had shown my Dad how. My Dad was absolutely
thrilled. My Dad died one month later, but I will never forget the joy on his
face because of K__. When the family hit hard times, I simply had to help.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment