Mom: Son who has power of attorney took more than 800G from me

DEAR HARRY: I just had the worst weekend of my life. My son admitted to me that he had taken almost all of my reserve funds. In order to make things easier for me, I had given him power of attorney over my account with a stockbroker when I entered a total-care community. My pension and SS cover my monthly maintenance payments, and I occasionally have had to tap my reserve for clothing and entertainment. The original $900,000 in that reserve is now down to $85,000. It all started when he used my money to pay off his credit cards. A big chunk went for his daughter's wedding. Then he bought a new home and a luxury car in the same year. I did not want to hear the rest. It now appears that I may not even be able to live here if the rates go up next year.

How could a son do that to his mother? I trusted him so much that I never asked to look at my monthly statements that went directly to him. He did not even seem remorseful when he told me about this. What can I do?

WHAT HARRY SAYS: If you haven't already done so, contact the bank and cancel that power of attorney. I assume you don't want to notify the police. I doubt very much that you'll ever recover any of that money. Many retirement communities have reserves set aside for residents who are in need. See if you can get help from this source to stay where you are. If you started there with a refundable deposit, you can use these funds, so you are not out in the cold.