Page 37 - 2018 July Voices
P. 37
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FROM THE FIELD
Table Topics
to the Rescue!
Susan Ellsworth, DTM
A warm and hearty thanks to
Toastmasters (especially to my Table
Topics experiences . . . )
Recently, I received a threatening
phone call from a smooth-sounding caller employee I talked with said yes, they do have
saying that I owed $998.12 to my electric services such a payments machine, and that my call was
company and that if I did not show up in the next the second such call he had gotten that day.
hour at a specific pharmacy with payments in My husband went out to our electric services
cash (at least $489.12 ) via a payments machine, company’s website and confirmed that not only
our electricity would be discontinued within did we not owe the huge amount of money the
the next hour. caller had alleged but also that recently there
I knew that was not true and decided to play had been a lot of bogus phone calls to their
along with the caller anyway. He was eager to customers related to money owed. The site also
tell me that any payments made online would recommended that if we receive such calls that
not be accepted because it would take a full day we should call the police.
for my account to be updated. Why was that? I I called my local police and gave them all the
asked. His answer? He said that there had been details that the scammer had given us, including
a recent update of the software on the website the phone number he had called from. I like to
and that other customers had also been found believe that my report will contribute to a team
that were behind in their payments. He even of scammers who will find themselves spending
gave me a phone number and extension to call several years in a government-run facility. Who
to my electric power company. knows?
Trying hard not to laugh, I continued listening In any case . . . thank you Toastmasters!
to his tall tale. I got specific “details” from the All those Table Topics sessions had me well-
scammer and then called the main number equipped to deal with that scammer!
the scammer had suggested. Sure enough, the Susan Ellsworth, DTM is a long time Toastmaster
automated answer announced that I had called and a champion of the online club movement. She is a
my electric power supply company. charter member of Firebirds Collective and founding
I called the pharmacy. The pharmacy member of Great White North Online Toastmasters.
VOICES! | JULY, 2018 37
