Most Americans who aren't directly affected by the child support crisis sleep easy under the comforting illusion that an effective enforcement system is firmly in place - and in theory, there is. But in practice, this is a lie I've experienced firsthand.

My name is Stacey McCallister Bent. I was married for 22 years and raised four children while supporting the overseas career of my ex-husband, a senior CIA officer. We moved every few years, often to difficult or dangerous postings, and I was frequently legally prohibited from working due to the host country's regulations. My husband wasn't keen on the idea of me working anyway.

'Stay-at-home mom' may conjure images of idle comfort, but that was far from my reality. I served as school board president in two different countries, sat on church boards, was an active PTA and classroom volunteer, ran fundraisers, led Girl Scout troops, tutored, counseled, and held everything together. Behind the scenes, I also supported my husband's career as a diplomatic hostess, travel planner, bookkeeper, household manager — and at times, unknowingly, as cover for CIA operations. Then he had an affair.

Then he filed for divorce. Then he decided he didn't need to pay a single penny in child or spousal support.

At the time, we were living in France. I didn't speak legal French, but I fought through the system anyway. I secured lawful, enforceable court orders — not excessive, not punitive, just standard support obligations — under the Hague Convention, a treaty to which both France and the U.S. are signatories. My ex-husband laughed and told me he'd never pay.

I assumed he was bluffing. He wasn't.

That's where my Justice for Mothers journey began. Six years later, I've discovered a national crisis hiding in plain sight. Over 10 million American mothers are directly impacted — and every taxpayer indirectly. We believe there is a system.