Should I chase up a colleague who never gave me my leaving present when I left 11 years ago.

[Noreturn]

11 years ago I left a company. I had a leaving meal and one of my senior colleagues did a collection for me. At the meal she took me to one side and said that she would purchase some gift vouchers for me rather than give me an envelope with all the change. She asked me which store I would like.
We left it that she would post the vouchers on to me.

A few months went by, no vouchers. My friend's mum works for the company and casually asked her about it, in case they were lost in the post. She implied that she kept forgetting, but yes she will get round to posting them.

Again, a few months went by, no vouchers. I then met her in a local town one day. I could see that she saw me from a distance and tried to nip into a shop hoping I did not see her. When I caught up with her she was all smiles and we had a brief catch up, she told me she was pregnant and filled me in about old colleagues.
She then said that she had been meaning to get in touch with me, she had some vouchers to give me but had lost my address! She then went on to say that she had used the vouchers as she was worried they would expire! It was ironic that the shop she had gone into was the one where the vouchers were meant to be from!

She asked for my address, said she would buy some more and post them on. I also said that she could always give them to my friend's mum to pass them on.

I have never received them. I have now heard that one of her children have started at the same school as my friend's child. My friend said that she can mention my name casually in conversation and mention that I never received the vouchers!

Am I being unreasonable to think that this woman she not think that she has got away with this. In truth, I had forgotten about it. It is not about the vouchers as such, but the fact that people have given to a collection for the collector to pocket the money for themselves. The company is big and without sounding big headed I know that there was probably quite a lot of money. I guess even after all this time I just want her to feel uncomfortable with what she has done.

Bloody hell mla I thought you were being a bit silly about a tape of some stupid dancing ( wasn't amarillo recent enough to be digital anyway) but now you've explained yanbu at all. In your case id be calling regulalry. So sorry for your loss.

maybe you could write them a letter explaining what the tape would mean to you mabel? Hope you manage to get a copy.

I can't believe anybody can be so pathetic to spend 11 years obsessing over promised vouchers somebody never got around to giving them.
You seriously have nothing better to do with your life?

Just to add, your so pathetic, you're still going on about it! Ridiculous.

That's a bit harsh bobble if you read the thread you'll see she hasn't been obsessing, but just bumped into the theif who stole a collection that everyone in her office had contributed to the woman as her DD has started at another friend's school.

YABU. Let it go!

It's not harsh at all, it was eleven years ago, she should be embarrassed to still be going on about it. It is obsessive to be trying to get the vouchers after all this time. No normal person would think twice about it, they would have shrugged their shoulders and got on with life ELEVEN years ago.

It is psycho to be hunting her down now through her kids friends!

Can you not read? She hasn't been obsessing, it cropped UP!

Just like the OP did, I would have shrugged my shoulders and got on with life. But I don't think I would ever feel comfortable that someone had stolen from my colleagues. But whatever...

Mabel, I am so sorry about your husband.

bobbleduck perhaps you should try reading the whole thread before commenting.

I have not been obsessing about it! I have not seen this woman for eleven years, we have all moved on. She came into contact again through another friend. There has been no harrassment or 'hunting her down', it was not even mentioned to her when my friend bumped into her.

The day that I wrote the original post I had been talking to my friend about it. We had a long discussion whether if you were wronged by someone in the past and get a chance to confront them, do you or move on?

I chose to move on as I have been for the past eleven years. It obviously came to light for her in her wrong doing when she bumped into my friend, and phoned me to apologise which I admire her for doing so.

Sometimes I think people just skim the thread and don't read all the details!