I read over Emily’s shoulder, marveling at the scope of what we’d accomplished in just 12 months. Two hundred women, $15 million in recovered assets, countless families where children had provided crucial testimony about financial conversations they’d witnessed.
“Emily, look at this part about you.”
The article included a sidebar titled “Young Heroes: Children Who Exposed Family Financial Fraud” that featured Emily prominently.
“Emily Stevens, now nine, was eight years old when she testified about secret conversations she’d overheard between her grandfather and his girlfriend about hiding money from her grandmother. Her detailed observations helped recover $1.9 million in fraudulent transfers and inspired the creation of the Katherine Gillian Foundation. Since then, Emily has become an informal mentor to other children whose observations have uncovered similar financial deception.”
“Grandma Kathy, does this mean other kids are doing what I did?”
“Exactly what you did—paying attention, asking questions, and helping protect their families from people who think children don’t notice important things.”
The phone rang before Emily could respond. Sandra’s voice was excited when I answered.
“Mrs. Gillian, Channel 7 wants to interview you and Emily for their weekend feature story about the foundation. They’re particularly interested in how children’s testimony has become crucial evidence in financial fraud cases.”
I looked at Emily, who was already nodding enthusiastically before I could ask her opinion about being interviewed on television.
“Sandra, schedule it for tomorrow afternoon. And, Sandra, see if Amy Thompson can participate, too. Her case has become one of our most successful recoveries.”
Two days later, I was sitting in the Channel 7 studio with Emily and Amy, watching both girls explain to reporter Janet Morrison how they documented their grandfather’s financial deception with the matter-of-fact precision that children bring to observable facts.
“Emily, you were eight when you first realized your grandfather was hiding things from your grandmother. What made you decide to pay attention to adult conversations?” Janet asked.
“Because Grandma Cathy was sad and I didn’t understand why Grandpa was having secret meetings with people who told me not to mention them. When adults tell kids to keep secrets from other adults, that usually means something bad is happening.”
“Amy, your notebook documentation helped recover over a million dollars for your grandmother. How did you know what information was important?”
“Emily’s story taught me that kids see things grown-ups miss because grown-ups think we’re not paying attention. But we are paying attention, especially when family members are acting weird or sad.”
Janet Morrison turned to me.
“Mrs. Gillian, your foundation has now documented over 50 cases where children’s observations provided crucial evidence of financial fraud. What does this tell us about family dynamics during divorce proceedings?”
“It tells us that people who commit financial fraud often underestimate everyone around them—their spouses and their grandchildren,” I said. “They assume that being kind or trusting means being stupid, and they assume that being young means being unobservant.”
“What advice would you give to other grandmothers who might be facing similar situations?”
“Trust your instincts. Ask questions about your family’s finances and listen to the children in your family. If a child notices that Grandpa has secrets or gets upset when they mention certain visitors, pay attention to what they’re telling you.”
“Emily, what would you say to other children who might be noticing confusing adult behavior in their families?”
Emily looked directly at the camera with the confidence that came from a year of speaking to lawyers, judges, and families about the importance of children’s observations.
“I would say that if grown-ups are telling you to keep secrets from other grown-ups you love, you should tell someone you trust. And if your grandma or your mom seems sad and you don’t know why, ask questions and pay attention to the answers.”
After the interview aired, the foundation received over 300 calls from women requesting consultations, plus dozens of calls from children who wanted to share observations about confusing family financial conversations.
“Mrs. Gillian,” Sandra reported during our weekly staff meeting, “we’re going to need additional space and more volunteer attorneys to handle the demand. The television story has made us a national resource for divorce-related financial fraud cases.”
“Sandra, what’s the most common pattern you’re seeing in the new cases?”
“Husbands who’ve spent years convincing their wives that financial management is too complicated for them to understand while systematically moving assets into accounts the wives can’t access. And, Mrs. Gillian, in about 60% of cases, children have observed planning meetings or conversations about hidden money.”
Six months later, Emily and I were standing in our expanded foundation offices, which now occupied an entire floor of downtown office space and employed 12 full-time advocates, plus a network of volunteer attorneys in six states.
“Grandma Kathy, look at all the thank-you letters.”
The wall behind Emily was covered with hundreds of letters from women who’d recovered hidden assets, children who’d successfully protected family members from financial fraud, and attorneys who’d used foundation resources to challenge sophisticated financial deception.
“Emily, read me your favorite letter.”
Emily selected an envelope with careful handwriting and a return address from Minnesota.
“Dear Emily and Mrs. Jillian,
My granddaughter Sarah is seven years old and she saved our family by paying attention when her grandfather thought no one was watching. Sarah noticed that Grandpa had a secret phone that he used to talk to someone named Rebecca about moving money before Grandma finds out. When Sarah told me about these conversations, I contacted your foundation and we discovered that my husband had hidden $800,000 in accounts I’d never known existed. Sarah testified just like Emily did, and the judge awarded me all the hidden money plus damages for fraud. But most importantly, Sarah learned that children have the power to protect their families when adults make bad choices.
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