A group of American retirees in Mexico had lost more than $26,000 they saved up to help local children, reports NBC 7 and Telemundo 20’s Sergio Flores
Deedee Baumgarner is a retired California teacher who lives in Delicias, a small town south of San Felipe in Baja California. She told NBC 7 she loves her life there and enjoys the beautiful sunrises.
“My two German shepherds and I have the beach to ourselves, and it’s pretty nice,” Baumgarner said.
Baumgarner is part of a group of retirees that run the South Campos Community Center and hosts gatherings and special celebrations. Both the retirees from the United States and local families attend the events.
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“I can be driving out in the desert to go to the dump or something, and they’ll be, ‘Hola, Deedee, hola,’ and they’re all waving at me, all excited,” Baumgarner said.
“It’s all about not just retiring and doing nothing but retiring and still being able to lend a little hand when we can,” Baumgarner said.
Last year everything was placed on hold after the board lost access to its budget when they deposited a cashier’s check for more than $26,000 into a Chase business account in the United States. The bank later sent them a letter saying the account was restricted due to their protocols against fraud. Baumgarner said they did everything the bank asked them to do, but that they never got the money back.
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“Check’s in the mail, you’ll get it in seven days. You’ll get it in 10 days, and then we’d say ok where is it? Oh we didn’t send it,” explained Baumgarner.
The retirees are enjoying their golden years much more now that NBC 7 Responds helped them recover the money they lost to fund the community center that does so much for local children. The center provides dental care for close to 50 kids from the town and provides school supplies.
A board member who used to live in San Diego suggested they call NBC 7 Responds for help. Once they contacted the team, we pressed Chase Bank for an explanation of why the non-profit had been without their money for more than a year.
“When we contacted you guys, you were the ones that helped us and within hours it happened,” Baumgarner said.
Chase Bank didn’t respond to NBC 7 or supply a statement about what happened.
To date, NBC 7 Responds and Telemundo 20 Responde has saved or recovered close to $2.3 million for viewers.
