Knowledge Is Power Conference

Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy and Nathan Baca speaking at Knowledge Is Power in Washington, DC - June 10, 2019

On June 10, 2019, Elder Dignity Co-Founder Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy was a featured speaker at Knowledge Is Power: A Workshop for Victims of Elder Financial Exploitation and Abuse in Washington, DC in conjunction with the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day activities. A former media executive, she presented Getting Your Voice Heard: 5 Keys To Working With Media, alongside Nathan Baca, Investigative Reporter with WJLA-TV ABC 7 in Arlington, VA.

Other presentations included:

  • Dr. Virginia Vincenti, Professor Emeritus of Human Development Family Sciences at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, shared data gleaned from a multi-state research project on Elder Family Financial Exploitation funded largely by USDA NIFA and focused on prevention.

  • Sam Sugar, M.D., Founder of Americans Against Abusive Probate Guardianships, presented via video on Ageism. He emphasized that guardianship is an extreme form of ageism and judges are failing to safeguard the wellbeing and estates of seniors.

  • Joe Roubicek, Detective with Broward County FL Office of State Attorney and retired elder crimes detective with the Ft. Lauderdale Police Department, revealed that financial exploitation of the elderly is not a financial crime. Instead, it is a crime against the person which changes the way you engage with law enforcement.

  • Vito Roppo, Esq, with Colosseum Counsel in Naples, FL, was brave enough to share his expertise among a group of people who have been victimized by attorneys. He shed light on managing your Trust so it is less likely to be taken over and the need for a new division focused on due diligence of the petitioner at the very beginning.

  • Martin Lynch, Constitution Law Professor and We The People Court Services from Tempe, AZ, proposed a way to bring about a jury trial in the court of equity which usually denies the possibility of a jury.

  • Dale Yeager, CEO of SERAPH Inc., spoke of how to bring the "wrath of God" on the perpetrators by compiling a tight evidence package to better access the appropriate prosecutors.

  • Jacqueline Garrick, LCSW-C, BCETS, SHRM-CP, Founder of Whistleblowers of America in Washington, DC, shared her experience as a whistleblower in a large organization and the retaliation that can occur.

We closed the day with Jacelyn Gibson, a victim and spiritual leader, sharing her story and with Teresa Kennedy providing an uplifting Power Living "call-and-response" interaction from her book, The Power Living Pledge: An Affirmation for a Purposeful & Powerful Life. The event was moderated and coordinated by Linda Arters of The Arters Group, PLLC in Tempe, AZ and graciously sponsored by the Bank Policy Institute and Wells Fargo.