A lifelong New Jersey resident, Bette Greenfield (left) retired in March and moved to Florida in July.
I’m not from a wealthy family living on a big estate in Palm Beach or in an Upper East Side apartment. I’m 71. I’ve worked hard and lived a quiet life – and have just lost my retire ment savings in the blink of an eye, thanks to Bernie Madoff.
When my brother told me the news, I said, “I guess I’m going to have to live in a refrigerator box now.”
I made jokes because it was the only thing I could do to not burst into tears.
How did this happen?
My father, a CPA, was smart and an extremely knowledgeable financial ad viser. As he aged, he wanted to have something where he could put his savings and live off the interest.
He was told by one of his wealthy Palm Beach friends that Bernie Madoff was a miracle worker with invest ments, and that he could pull strings to get Dad into a trust fund with Madoff Securities.
It was less than $400,000 – not a large amount by Madoff standards – but his friend helped him get into a fund. Dad was sure that he had made a wise investment and that he and his wife could be comfortable for the rest of their lives.
For 10 years, he did live off the interest and totally believed in the way the money was increasing.
Dad told me, “Bernie Madoff is brilliant. When I pass away, keep the money with him, and you and your brothers will always have something to fall back on.”
Dad passed away in 2003 and left the Madoff trust to my brothers and me, along with our stepsister.
And it did continue to grow. The trust continued to earn up to 16 percent each year, so we didn’t question it much. And then this year, we thought, how can he still be making 10 percent in this tumultuous market? We were amazed and thanked Dad’s memory every time we saw income and not a loss.
I’m glad my father isn’t around to find out the truth.
We have lost everything to help us through our golden years. How am I going to get a job when young people can’t even find work right now? I have my IRA from my years at Merrill Lynch, but it’s worth only half what it used to be. So I guess now Social Security is the only thing I have left to look at.
Bernie Madoff, in his selfishness and ego, left many people feeling pain and anguish about their futures. I’d like to see him punished, but none of that is going to bring the money back, and I have to go on with my life.
So, I am taking a philosophical approach to this terrible loss. At least I have my health – but for how long?