Losing a loved one is never easy, and it’s especially tough when it’s the primary breadwinner of the family. In this case, OP (original poster), a 42-year-old woman, lost her husband when her daughter was 7 years old. Although the tragic event left an emotional void, the subsequent settlement left the daughter with a trust fund for her future education and endeavors.
Life Moves On
Fast forward a few years, and OP has remarried a lovely man with his own children (1 daughter, and 1 son). All of the children live together with them, and both their daughters are graduating and heading off to college.
However, the issue now is that OP’s stepdaughter (SD) will have to take out loans to pay for college because her parents can’t afford the full tuition. In contrast, OP’s daughter will graduate debt-free, with her father’s trust fund covering her education expenses.
Trust Fund For One Or All?
OP’s husband believes the trust fund should be split equally between all three children to give them all a head start in life. OP disagrees, stating that the trust fund was intended for her daughter alone. She believes that it is unfair to take away her daughter’s inheritance and that the money is a symbol of her late husband’s legacy.
OP is conflicted and unsure if she is being selfish for wanting to protect her daughter’s trust. She has expressed her concerns to her husband, but he believes that she is teaching her daughter to be selfish and that she doesn’t consider her stepchildren the same as her daughter.
Ask for Help
OP reached out to the Reddit community to ask if she is in the wrong for wanting to protect her daughter’s inheritance.
StAlvis agreed with OP’s stance and has over 19,000 Reddit users agreeing with the comment,
“That settlement was for your deceased husband’s children, not your future children, and certainly not someone else’s.”
Countless other comments poured in agreeing with OP and StAlvis’ stance on the matter.
Ok-Dirt-6166 said,
“Keep your stance, this is your daughter’s money from HER father. The other children have money from THEIR father.”
No-Mechanic-3048 proposed that OP watch out for any undue pressure that her daughter may have to face from her new family members,
“Please check in with your daughter to make sure your husband and his kids do not start pressuring and guilting her. We’ve seen it before.”
For those who are still on the fence about whether OP is in the right for not sharing the money, waltersmama says,
“It’s HER money. The daughter’s. This entitled man is arguing with his wife over stealing money from her daughter. He is ridiculous.”
Continuing the outpouring of support, here’s Aylauria, another user out of thousands, who supports OP in her decision,
“The gall of him. OP’s daughter lost her father. There can never be anything fair between her and her step-siblings. They have their dad. Husband needs to back the hell off. That money is compensation for a terrible loss which only OP and her daughter suffered. How dare Husband now make it about him and his kids?”
The Verdict
Overall, there’s no question that the Reddit community has strongly decided to side with OP on this matter. The verdict is clear – OP is not selfish to want to preserve something that was intended for a specific person, especially when it is the result of a tragic event. What are your thoughts about this?
You can find the full story here on Reddit.
Featured Image Credit: govorkov.photo /Depositphotos.com.
This article originally appeared on Ash & Pri.
Like our content? Be sure to follow us.