How It All Adds Up

It may sound strange that when I was 12 years old, my dream job was to be an accountant. Even as a preteen, I loved crunching numbers.

My mom was a tax preparer and when she reviewed her documents at the kitchen table of our Chicago home, my best friend and I always helped her match up every penny. I learned at a young age that bank statements tell a story of how people behave—both the good and the bad. I knew then accounting was the career for me.

I graduated from the University of North Texas with an accounting degree and did very well for myself…until I was laid off.

Volunteering Yields Big Returns

Thankfully, financial savvy isn’t the only gift my mother shared. She also taught me the importance of being a servant leader and giving back to the community. When I moved to Phoenix, the first thing I did was look for volunteer opportunities with United Way. I knew volunteering would help me keep up my skills and network.

As a site coordinator for United Way’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program for the past seven years, I help families on the brink of financial hardship. While they often find tax prep stressful, I want them to know that I can relate. It’s my goal to make the process painless.

I tell them I, too, was a VITA recipient and how I used MyFreeTaxes.com and assure them they’re taking the first, very important step to getting their family back on financial track—just as I did.

The reward of securing a big tax return for a family is priceless.

There’s always a story behind the numbers. VITA has not only given me a pathway to connect with families and pass on this free skill, it allows me to honor my mom’s legacy.

Visit A VITA Site

Alethea Session provides accounting services to small business and nonprofits and considers herself a “volunteer-holic.” When she’s not volunteering with VITA or Junior Achievement, she teaches personal finance classes at the University of Phoenix and hosts an annual Accounting Career Awareness Program at ASU West for high school students in the summer. She is the Executive Director for the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA) and looks forward to starting her own nonprofit focused on financial fitness and education.