Chapter 3 - Why Gloria was Lizzy’s guardian
My younger sister Rachel died twenty-two months before that night.
Her husband Eric died with her.
Car accident.
A delivery truck crossed the median on an icy interstate outside Toledo.
Wrong place.
Wrong second.
No drunk-driving villain.
No criminal conspiracy.
Weather.
Speed.
A mechanical problem still disputed by insurers.
A catastrophe ordinary enough to be unbearable.
Lizzy was four.
She had been at preschool.
That fact saved her life.
After the funeral, the family had to decide where she would live.
Rachel’s will named three potential guardians in order:
Eric’s sister Claire.
Our mother Gloria.
Me.
Claire lived in Seattle and had recently begun chemotherapy for lymphoma.
She declined.
Gloria accepted immediately.
At the time, I thought that was right.
I lived in Chicago then.
Worked for a medical-software company.
Travelled twice a month.
One-bedroom apartment.
No spouse.
No children.
Gloria and Walt lived five minutes from Lizzy’s preschool.
Large house.
Stable finances.
Retired.
Lizzy already spent weekends there.
I said:
“Mom can give her stability.”
That sentence haunted me later.
But it was not irrational.
At the time, Gloria had never been accused of abusing a child.
Controlling?
Yes.
Difficult?
Yes.
Physical confinement?
I did not know.
The court approved guardianship.
Rachel and Eric’s finances were not enormous.
But they had planned responsibly.
Life insurance.
Retirement accounts.
Home equity.
After debts, expenses, and probate, approximately $428,000 went into a trust for Lizzy.
First County Trust Company acted as corporate trustee.
The trust could pay:
Education.
Medical care.
Therapy.
Childcare.
Clothing.
Activities.
Reasonable housing-related costs.
Ordinary support.
It was not a blank checking account.
A monthly care distribution of $2,650 went into a designated household account Gloria used for Lizzy’s ongoing expenses.
Separately, Lizzy received roughly $1,392 per month in Social Security survivor benefits, with Gloria acting as representative payee.
Combined:
A little over $4,000 monthly for a child.
That sounds like a lot.
Children are expensive.
Preschool had been $780.
Health premiums.
Therapy after her parents died.
Clothing.
Food.
Activities.
Housing.
Transportation.
No one expected Gloria to spend exactly four thousand dollars on Lizzy every month.
Unused money should remain for Lizzy.
What nobody expected was:
Luxury boutiques.
A home theater.
Expensive restaurants.
Cash withdrawals nobody could explain.
May you like
At least I had not expected it.
Apparently somebody else had.
