“I don’t really need to be here,” he said, leaning in close so no one within earshot could hear. “My wife has no idea how to handle money, so that’s why we’re taking the class.”

Slightly shocked at the cavalier way the 60-ish year-old man was telling me this, all I could do was nod okay and then look past him to his wife sitting at a table working intently with a financial coach.

He continued. “Yeah, I’ve been out of work for about three years now. You know, downsizing.” And with the way he said “downsizing” he implied that I understood how not only he, but countless others have been victims of some silent conspiracy concocted by corporate fat cats, foreigners who work cheap, and of course – you know, of course – the government. It’s funny how much you can hear in the tone of someone’s voice.

The short conversation concluded when I learned that he and his wife have kept their finances separate since marrying some 30 plus years earlier.

One of the more intriguing parts of the Financial Coaching Program we run at Hope Community Church is learning what landed people there. For many, their monthly income is snatched up by lots of creditors and they’re ready to stop the madness. For some, they’ve just experienced some form of a life transition (divorce, career change, empty nest, etc.) and they want guidance for the days ahead. For a few, they have no idea where to begin and they need someone to show them up from down.

And every so often we attract the Victims.

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