My oldest granddaughter, Nicki, age 17, has been invited to spend Spring Break in Florida with a friend and her friend's mother, staying with their relatives. She is really looking forward to this trip.
Nicki's mother, my daughter, has taught Nicki that there is no free lunch. If she wanted to go on the trip, it was up to her to save the money she needed to go. Nicki works hard. She goes to school. After school and weekends, she works a job. She worked as many hours as she could get in order to earn the money she needed. And she reached her goal.
A couple of days ago Nicki and her friend went to the Mall of America to buy some new clothes for their trip. My daughter's posts on Facebook to tell our relatives about what happened, tell the story. The first is the original post. The rest are answers to inquiries about what happened.
"Thanks to the Bloomington PD and MOA security for finding and arresting the 3 15 year old girls who stole money from my daughter last night."
"They went into her changing room when she was grabbing a different size clothing....they bolted and Nicki and her friend yelled for security. Apparently security was already looking for them for something else. They are charged with theft, false information to a police officer and possession of marijuana. Luckily they recovered some of her money when they were searched."
"She went down to the PD at MOA and they were all lined up with their hands on the wall! Luckily she got $160 back out of $300."
"I think she has a new found respect for the police and security for everything they did. That's a win in this situation!"
I am glad that Nicki or her friend weren't hurt. It could have been much worse than it was. She learned a couple of hard facts. First, you don't ever leave cash unattended, even if your friend is in the next changing stall. And second, there are bad people everywhere, who want something for nothing and will take what they want if given the opportunity.
I am also grateful that the police and security people at the Mall of America took Nicki and her friend seriously, and did everything they could to help. There are adults who will just dismiss teenagers because they are teenagers, but these people kept at it until the criminals were caught and arrested.
And Nicki had the satisfaction of being able to watch these three hoodlums being handcuffed. That's got to be worth something!
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Time for a lesson in OPSEC. Operational Security. You need to watch out everywhere you go. Their are those that pray on tourists. When we go anyplace I move my wallet to my front pocket.
ReplyDeleteLiving in a small town you can get locked into a false sense of security.
Happy it all worked out good.
Sad but it happens everyday. I'm sure she's learned a very valuable lesson. Why did she only get a partial recovery of her funds? Did the critters spend the rest?
ReplyDeleteRob...I'm pretty sure that Nicki will be more careful in the future. I'm just thankful at this point that she wasn't hurt.
ReplyDeleteStephen...The amount of money she got back was the amount found when the girls were searched. I'm sure they must have already spent the amount that was missing. Yes, it was a painful lesson. I find it sad that youthful trust had to be destroyed in order to learn it.
ReplyDeleteThanks Mom! Unfortunately, this is what it took for Nicki to learn a valuable lesson but she is a better person because of it. She and Rachel handled the situation perfectly! Rachel's mom and I are so proud of them! They did the right thing to get help, they gave the utmost respect to the authorities and the end result is what it should have been...the guilty were apprehended and are charged with their crimes. I am so proud, that at 17 years old, they were able to handle the entire situation on their own and after it was all said and done, they let us know what had happened. I think that maybe Nicki has listened to some of what I have tried to teach her. To do what is right, respect the law and the authorities and never give up. She is a great kid and so deserves this trip she worked so hard for! So, so proud of her!
ReplyDeleteJeri
It still stinks that she's missing $140. I wonder if the judge will make them pay it back?
ReplyDeleteJeri...I wanted to post about what happened for three reasons.
ReplyDeleteFirst, it may give somebody else a heads up to watch out so the same thing doesn't happen to them or their kids.
Second, I am so very proud of you for raising my granddaughter to be the kind, honest and respectful person she has become. I know it hasn't always been easy, but you taught her well. She wouldn't have been able to deal with all of this the way she did if you hadn't stuck with it through good times and not so good. Well done, my Daughter.
And third, I wanted Nicki to know how very proud of her I am. She worked so very hard to be able to take this trip, and when some of that hard earned money was stolen from her, she didn't try to blame anybody for her mistake. She did the right thing and kept her head about her. She handled it all by herself and handled it well. She has always had my love. She also has my respect, as do you.
Love, Mom/Grandma
Gorges...I sort of doubt it. It would be pretty difficult to prove how much Nicki had to begin with. Her Mom told me that Nicki was happy to get back as much as she did. I think that watching those three girls being handcuffed and hauled away might have been worth it to her!
ReplyDeleteKudo's to you and your daughter for the upbringing of your children - there IS no free lunch - ever.
ReplyDeleteSo glad for Nicki that she kept a cool head and that they managed to recoup some of her money. Hope she enjoys her spring break :)
Dani.....Thank you for your kind words. My children and grandchildren were raised the same way I was raised. My Dad told me long ago, "If you want it - work for it." He didn't believe in taking handouts, and neither do I.
ReplyDeleteNicki is really excited about her trip, in spite of the nastiness the other night. I know she will have fun. She has earned it!
It's that kind of world. My sister (aged 56) went into a laundry at a strip mall to pick up some clothes. She left her purse in her car. Some "hispanic youths" smashed the window, and stole the purse. By the time she got back out to the car, figured out what had happened, and called the police there were already over $5000 worth of charges on her credit cards. Just one unguarded second..... Incidentally, although the whole thing was captured by a security camera, there were no arrests.
ReplyDeleteHarry.....How awful for your sister. It is bad enough to have to replace a car window and the contents of her purse and to have someone use her credit cards, but to have nobody ever pay for all the damage is just wrong. If I live to be 100, I still will never figure out why there are people who think it is OK to take what doesn't belong to them. You say it's that kind of world, and you are right. And isn't that sad. Maybe that's why the more I'm around people, the more I like my dogs!
ReplyDelete