Trudy's Dream
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Trudy's Dream--
My dear friend Trudy needs help to realize a dream. She has been an In-Home care giver for 30 years, and has been a wonderfully trustworthy person and hard worker the 23 years I've known her. I've watched her lose her mentally ill sister to a meth addiction and overdose, and then her mother after years of looking after them through medical complications. I'm talking about losing your best friend when Trudy lost her mother.
One of the sweetest qualities that I love about Trudy is her trusting heart. She has a childlike trust that people see the world as she does, and believes the best in others just like she does. Unfortunately, this characteristic has cost her on many occassions.
One of these times involved the mother of the in-home care client Trudy had worked with for over 25 years. If you had a relationship with someone for that long of a time, wouldn't anyone think there would be a strong bond of trust. Trudy always sees the best in people.
After Trudy's in-home care client went to a skilled nursing facility with phemonia, the mother of this client asked Trudy to continue visiting her daughter and make sure she was being cared for properly by the staff. Trudy followed the mother's instructions to continue working with her daughter for a few weeks. The mother kept in communication with Trudy over these weeks, asking her to spend her normal care hours with her daughter. Trudy followed the mother's instructions.
Several months later, Trudy was cited with fraud, because the care facility was billing the Department of Health and Human Services funds for the same weeks of care that Trudy was also submitting her hours. The mother had never told Trudy that she needed to stop submitting her hours for the same weeks of care given to her daughter because she was also drawing on the county Department of Health and Human Services funds.
What a mess! Now, Trudy faced prosecution by the county, and when the investigation was completed, the mother lied and claimed she had informed Trudy to stop visiting her daughter. The case rested on one person's word against another. Trudy was devistated by this betrayal, and due to the physical stress and grief of losing her own mother that same year, decided she didn't want to fight this through a court trial. She had also been diagnosed with breast cancer around the same time of losing her mother that year and underwent surgery to remove breast tissue. Trudy was struggling just to get herself to the court dates because of her health. I drove and helped her to never miss a court date for one year of monthly dates. The court gave her a choice to take the case to trial, or plead guilty and receive 3 years probation, several months of which she wore an ankle braclette, and pay a judgment of 14,000.00 fine.
She decided she simply wasn't well enough to go through a trial where she would be required to come face to face with this mother who had lied to the court's private investigators. As a friend who has watched Trudy's life, this didn't surprise me. Trudy has a history of domestic violence, and struggles to stand up for herself. She also understands that it is better to forgive those who have injured us instead of seeking revenge.
I couldn't believe how all of this played out. Trudy did absolutely nothing wrong. She worked the hours she submitted for payment. The only thing I wish she had been able to do was fight that charge through a trial.
I'm starting this GoFundMe campaign because some things in life are just wrong. The donations will be used to help Trudy with her living expenses, while she pays off this judgment. She has very little income being on Social Security Disability, and will turn 62 this September.
We may not have the strength to fight an injustice ourselves, but I hope others will join me in helping Trudy to realize the dream of having all this behind her.
Thanks for your help,
Adell Gillman
My dear friend Trudy needs help to realize a dream. She has been an In-Home care giver for 30 years, and has been a wonderfully trustworthy person and hard worker the 23 years I've known her. I've watched her lose her mentally ill sister to a meth addiction and overdose, and then her mother after years of looking after them through medical complications. I'm talking about losing your best friend when Trudy lost her mother.
One of the sweetest qualities that I love about Trudy is her trusting heart. She has a childlike trust that people see the world as she does, and believes the best in others just like she does. Unfortunately, this characteristic has cost her on many occassions.
One of these times involved the mother of the in-home care client Trudy had worked with for over 25 years. If you had a relationship with someone for that long of a time, wouldn't anyone think there would be a strong bond of trust. Trudy always sees the best in people.
After Trudy's in-home care client went to a skilled nursing facility with phemonia, the mother of this client asked Trudy to continue visiting her daughter and make sure she was being cared for properly by the staff. Trudy followed the mother's instructions to continue working with her daughter for a few weeks. The mother kept in communication with Trudy over these weeks, asking her to spend her normal care hours with her daughter. Trudy followed the mother's instructions.
Several months later, Trudy was cited with fraud, because the care facility was billing the Department of Health and Human Services funds for the same weeks of care that Trudy was also submitting her hours. The mother had never told Trudy that she needed to stop submitting her hours for the same weeks of care given to her daughter because she was also drawing on the county Department of Health and Human Services funds.
What a mess! Now, Trudy faced prosecution by the county, and when the investigation was completed, the mother lied and claimed she had informed Trudy to stop visiting her daughter. The case rested on one person's word against another. Trudy was devistated by this betrayal, and due to the physical stress and grief of losing her own mother that same year, decided she didn't want to fight this through a court trial. She had also been diagnosed with breast cancer around the same time of losing her mother that year and underwent surgery to remove breast tissue. Trudy was struggling just to get herself to the court dates because of her health. I drove and helped her to never miss a court date for one year of monthly dates. The court gave her a choice to take the case to trial, or plead guilty and receive 3 years probation, several months of which she wore an ankle braclette, and pay a judgment of 14,000.00 fine.
She decided she simply wasn't well enough to go through a trial where she would be required to come face to face with this mother who had lied to the court's private investigators. As a friend who has watched Trudy's life, this didn't surprise me. Trudy has a history of domestic violence, and struggles to stand up for herself. She also understands that it is better to forgive those who have injured us instead of seeking revenge.
I couldn't believe how all of this played out. Trudy did absolutely nothing wrong. She worked the hours she submitted for payment. The only thing I wish she had been able to do was fight that charge through a trial.
I'm starting this GoFundMe campaign because some things in life are just wrong. The donations will be used to help Trudy with her living expenses, while she pays off this judgment. She has very little income being on Social Security Disability, and will turn 62 this September.
We may not have the strength to fight an injustice ourselves, but I hope others will join me in helping Trudy to realize the dream of having all this behind her.
Thanks for your help,
Adell Gillman
Organizer
Adell Park
Organizer
Roseville, CA
