My Old Mentor, America’s Largest Female Ponzi Schemer

Pretty wild and traumatic situation.

Involving my boss/mentor of 10 years.

A woman of high regard in society—one I looked up to and put on a pedestal. To the point where I put her needs ahead of my own. I wanted to be just like her, so I thought.

Crazy part is, she was the mastermind behind the largest female-led Ponzi scheme in U.S. history. You can look her up—I’m not sharing names.

I’m writing about her because I allowed her to break me.

Losing Everything You Thought Was Real

I was a confident, driven, proud person—feeling like I was really accomplishing things.

I was part of building businesses, creating concepts, launching brands. I had PR coaching, I was nominated for awards and even won one locally.

I was an executive at the corporate level. Most considered me her right-hand gal.

I thought I was pretty damn cool!

We traveled together to her many homes. Sat in suites at games and concerts. Had dinners with our families. I even crashed at her and her husband’s house often. Holidays together, too.

I felt like I was living a dream, but instead I was living in a dream.
A nightmare in the end.

When Trust Shatters

I thought we had a loyal, loving relationship.

I trusted her more than most people in my life

See when you have someone you love (not romantically) literally holding your face and staring into your baby blues repeating over and over “I love you. I love you. You need to know how much I really love you” – you believe it. You believe it’s an unbreakable bond.

So, I thought.

Then that one day came.

Where you find out it was all a façade.

One big lie.

The Call That Changed My Life

I received a phone call from her.

I remember I was sitting at one of our offices in the dark finishing up some work.

She called and said, “I have something to tell you.”

My heart dropped.

“OMG, are your parents, okay?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“Is your husband, okay?”

“Yes. Everyone is okay… for now.”

Then she started to explain the situation she had gotten herself into. She was taking investor funds for a business that promised high and quick returns. This included federal banks, big-dollar investors, family, friends- and even me and my husband.

“There was a whistleblower, and the SEC has been investigating me.”

I couldn’t comprehend what I was hearing.

We all believed that fund was real.

We trusted her.

That’s why we invested our own savings—six figures of it.

But what she was really doing was using the funds to keep her other businesses afloat.

Kicker? She knew she was under investigation for a long time—and still took money from me, my husband, a week before that call.

Betrayal Trauma Hits Hard

Who the fuck does that to someone?!?

What mentally deranged person continues taking money, knowing the Feds are about to pounce?

Well, that’s over.

She is in prison for a long time. 15ish years.

You can google the story-it’s everywhere.

But my life?

Well, it came to a complete halt.

In one day, I lost the closest thing to blood to me, her.

The Fallout: Anxiety, Shame, Depression

Then the rest started to set in. Ten years of my life I dedicated to her -gone.

I lost my career, my income, health benefits, our investment.

Most importantly I lost my identity, any self-recognition out the door.

Everything that I had thought I built over a decade? It wasn’t actually real.

The pride I had in helping grow something massive (we had 400 employees) went to shit.

I had no clue which direction to turn b/c I was so heartbroken by her.

My mind was like an old school movie reel that was flashing before me, flickering through so many memories over that period of time together.

I cried so hard I could barely breath. Couldn’t move.

Immediate depression kicked in and I was struggling to believe that this is all real.

Working through the grit of it all.

Therapy helped. A little, I thought I was better.

Enough time passed and people stopped asking about it.

But I still struggled.

I was so stuck I had no clue what my capabilities or strengths were.

I couldn’t sum up my experience in a resume b/c I wore so many hats I looked like a damn forced jigsaw puzzle.

Finding a job was like finding the so cliché “needle in a haystack”.

I didn’t know where I belonged.

What I was meant to do. Hell, maybe I never really knew.

I relied on her so much I didn’t know how to stand on my own two feet.

Where am I at today? When Healing Finally Begins

I have been working on myself quite a bit. Finding my strength and what excites me again.

I still slip up from time to time and I use to beat myself up for that.

Lately it’s been coming up more and more. Likely b/c I have been focusing on healing.

So, I thought that maybe the best medicine for me is to write about it.

Put it out to the open.

Acknowledge the trauma.

Give it some light so I can release it.

Telling a small portion of my story—for the first time—right here.

Working toward getting myself unstuck.

So, if you’ve got a story, a lesson, or something that helped you through a traumatic time—share it.

Tell us what did you do and how you worked through it?

You never know who it might help. And honestly? I can use the help.

Let’s Get Unstuck TGT.

This is a safe space—rooted in tough positivity, honest stories, and a shared search for real guidance that keeps us going.

Take Away
This may resonate with you. I know I’ve shared this clip beforeThe clip that change everything for me but it continues to resonate so deeply that it surfaced another layer I’m still working through.

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