rechelle's lifelyrics

For the past several weeks, I’ve been in the midst of organizing documents spanning almost 100 years of history. In the beginning of this quest, my main objective was to make important information easily accessible to the members of the nonprofit organization who own the documents and the building they have been stored in since 1937. In the process of reading correspondence, minutes, and financial documents, I’ve uncovered intrigue, breadcrumbs of crime, good will, and amazing facts that certainly needed to be remembered and examined.

The first time I can remember feeling compelled to dig deeper into the documents to find answers to questions no one else was asking was when I was helping my Grandma with her bookkeeping. I ended up in a position to examine her financial and real estate documents, because I happened to visit her on a day she was completely overwhelmed with her paperwork. She answered the door in tears, and told me she was trying to prepare her paperwork for her upcoming tax return. For the next many years, I had regular meetings with her to go over business correspondence, update her records and filing, and whatever tasks were especially “taxing” for her. I remember discovering that she had been overcharged or incorrectly billed for something, and I was able to help her recover her funds.

That experience really built my confidence and understanding that I can read and interpret complicated information, ask questions to make sure I’m interpreting correctly, and make requests to correct errors. This has proven to be a very valuable skill through the years for my household and in several situations at various jobs. When I was working for the County Parks department, I was trying to learn from the previous accounting clerk through reviewing the billing and correspondence that was stored in my cubicle. I discovered (and ultimately collected) over $100,000 of unpaid invoices! Probably my most dramatic example of learning from someone through research was when the man who was solely responsible for documenting and reporting water data suddenly died at the RV Resort where I worked. I asked his widow for the boxes of his handwritten documentation so I could figure out how to continue the required reporting. It was a fascinating journey learning from a man after he was gone through his written records spanning several years. However, there have been times the pursuit for answers became very challenging, because there were people involved who didn’t want to shed light on something that was being done wrong.

There is an old saying, “Knowledge is Power.” I’m writing this little tale to encourage you to take the time to read contracts you sign, and don’t be afraid to ask questions if something isn’t clear or you are unsure. The volunteer work I’ve been doing recently for a nonprofit organization has resulted in many discoveries. These documents were just waiting to be discovered to teach us the origin of the building, the stories of so many that have passed on, and the unfortunate disappearance of over $20,000 at the hands of previous members. Ultimately, my project to get the Organization organized has turned into a legal investigation that may recover funds from the past for much needed projects in the future!