Ronnie Sherard

I grabbed the mail when I got home from work on Thursday and there was a letter for my wife. The odd thing was, it was addressed in her maiden name. Seeing as we have been married for nearly 10 years, you can imagine the strange look we gave each other. Upon opening the letter, she discovered it was a collection notice. Apparently Afni, Inc. is seeking $228.56 on a Verizon land line phone number from Binghamton, New York. The really weird part: we’ve never lived in New York, nor have we ever set foot in New York. So, I’m thinking to myself, what the hell?

On Friday, I hopped into support chat with Verizon. I had tried calling on Thursday evening, but after getting bounced to five or six different numbers, I got a message saying they were closed for the night. I was pretty confident entering the chat with the Verizon tech that all would be vindicated when she attempted to look up the account. Surprisingly, she actually verified that they had turned over an account matching my wife’s maiden name to the collection agency. Then, I hit a brick wall. She said they had no further information on the account and that I would have to deal with the collection agency.

With what the tech had told me, I immediately sent my wife a text message to get her credit report and review it. As I suspected, there was no derogatory information contained in it. We sent a letter via certified mail with a return receipt to Afni, Inc. expressing the fact that she disputes the debt and that we have never lived in New York, as necessary for her protection under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). We sent courtesy copies to the Illinois Attorney General, Nebraska Attorney General, and Verizon. Today, I went through Intelius.com and spent about $20 on background information. I ran a check on my wife’s maiden and married names. Therefore, I believe we have the documentation we need to take Afni, Inc. to court if it gets that far. I have also contacted a lawyer in Chicago, just for safe measure.

I returned from Florida on Saturday after a successful house hunting trip. I am so happy we were lucky enough to find the deal we did. It’s a three bedroom house versus a four bedroom, but I think it is plenty of space for the four of us and occasional visitors. It is close to the school and has a pool and playground to enjoy with the kids. I think life is about to get a heck of a lot better!

Well, it’s hard to believe that in just under three months I’ll be down in Florida. I’m heading down early to get things set up for the family to move. In a couple of weeks, I’ll head down there to look at houses and see if I can find somewhere for us to live. It’s another chapter in my career, but it will be hard to leave.

Reflecting back on our time in Omaha, there is very little I would have done different. I was able to complete my Bachelor’s degree and start on my Master’s. I was active in Scouts, although this last year has been fairly tied up with working two jobs. Speaking of two jobs, I’ve met some great people through Domino’s. I’m hoping I can stay in touch with a few of them, somehow. It’s been a great ride, but it’s time to move on. Five years in one place is, well, too long when you’re looking at advancing in your career.

Last week, we drove to Plano, TX for Carol’s surgery.  While we were there, we decided to find a light lunch.  We ended up at Souper Salad and Taylor had oranges.  Of course, he had to be silly!

Last month, we went camping at the Henry Doorly Zoo here in Omaha.  It was actually quite an experience and I was surprised to hear of this opportunity.  At Pack 476, we never really heard about these opportunities.  We had a great time and Taylor even enjoyed his Lunchables we had for dinner!