(The following story by Patricia Monopoli appeared on the Democrat and Chronicle website on August 1, 2010.)
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — This is a story about a prank or scam, a 97-year-old lady and the reactions of people at Amtrak.
My mom, Nora Cieri, who lives in Utica at a retirement community, got a call at 1 a.m. Monday, June 14, from some scam artist convincing her that I (her daughter) needed her because I was very ill and in the hospital.
Without checking the validity of this call, my mom got herself down to the Amtrak station in Utica, bought a ticket and boarded a train for Rochester. All the personnel on the train treated her with friendliness and care. She thought she was in Rochester when the train stopped in Syracuse and got off. The conductor, she believes, caught her and got her back on the train.
She continued to Rochester, but this isn’t the best part of her odyssey.
Mom got off in Rochester, didn’t know what hospital I was in, since the caller did not say, and didn’t have any numbers to call to find out.
Here is where the Amtrak employee Richard Perry took over to help her find me (and to make sure that she was safe).
I don’t know why Mom caught Richard’s eye, but he picked up on her face that she needed help. He started an investigation with her of all of my friends who would be able to track me down.
This isn’t easy. I live in Macedon, Wayne County, and am not found in the regular part of the phone book. My mom only knows the names of friends who also mostly live in Wayne County — no addresses or phone numbers.
Richard stayed with my mom, looked up name after name, trying to get a line on my location and condition. He ended up finding my friend Jane Culver in Palmyra, who tracked me down through another friend, Sandy Ciaccia, who called me to confirm my condition and location. I was fine. I called Richard at the number that had been relayed through my friends. I learned that my mom was indeed at the Amtrak station and very upset. Richard assured me he would take care of her until I got there to pick her up.
The pranksters/scammers did not commit a crime, according to the police, and we cannot trace them. But the Amtrak employees, especially Richard, sure made up for their misdeeds.
You see, sometimes things balance out. We appreciate the many Amtrak employees’ personal care, professionalism and high moral standards. There is not enough I can say about them, except thank you. I would like people to know that, though there are some evil-doers, there are angels, too.