It was almost four years ago that we decided to cancel our cell phone service with T-Mobile. We made sure we paid everything off our accounts before doing so, we even went into one of the T-Mobile stores to do this. When we canceled our service we were told that the cancelation was complete and we were "thanked" for our business. We never expected that over these years there was an hidden charge.

Today, my family received a letter saying that my mom's "accumulated debt" with T-Mobile has been sent to an collection agency called Enhanced Recovery Company, LLC. Over the past four years, we were never informed of this charge. When I called T-Mobile the customer service representative simply denied to check the status of the account from four years ago and transferred me directly over to the collection agency. I tried to plea with the representative on the phone--how foolish of me--she told me that "the company would sue my parents for every penny they have unless we pay this bill."

My parents and I do not have the money to pay the bill as of this moment. We are strained on our financial resources. We have always been strained, I know this because I've been the caretaker of my parents' finances ever since I was 13. I'm now 17, and will be a college student next year and I need to save money for that. I don't know how my parents and I would be able to pay off the $700. My schedule as a student is making the option of me getting a job an impossible task.

Ever since I began speaking my first words in English, I have been the sole person to help my parents navigate the language barrier that they face being Hmong immigrants. I have always had a solution to my parents' problems. But now I'm here at 17 years of age and I do not know how to help me parents. I am fearful for our future right now. I am making a plea, I don't know what to do, I don't know how to help my parents, what do I do?