My daughter-in-law laughed as she gave me a $2 scratch-off for my 73rd birthday. Ten months later, my own son shoved a senior living brochure in front of me and said, “We already picked your room.” They thought I was too old to fight back. They had no idea what I had been hiding.

The director, a woman named Denise Harper, asked why I wanted to help.

“I have some time,” I said.

“And I know what it feels like to be frightened by numbers.”

Denise laughed.

“That is the most practical answer I’ve heard all month.”

I began by helping people sort bills into folders and understand the difference between a regular expense and an emergency.

There were no dramatic speeches.

A retired bus driver wanted to stop overdraft fees.