This Financial Literacy Month, we celebrate the coaches and community members who prove that lasting change doesn’t start with money. It starts with understanding, habits, and believing a better future is possible. 

At Lawrence Community Works, financial literacy is more than a program. It is a pathway to confidence, stability, and long term possibility. By meeting people where they are, LCW helps community members move from short term survival to long term stability through education and coaching that go hand in hand, led by coaches who do not just teach financial concepts but live them. 

Two of those coaches, Arleen Zorrilla and Aleyda Garcia, bring decades of lived experience, empathy, and community connection to their work. This Financial Literacy Month, they’re sharing the lessons that matter most. 

Aleyda Garcia was born in the Dominican Republic and came to the United States to continue her education. She earned a bachelor’s degree in business from Merrimack College, drawn to understanding how systems work and how people make financial decisions. Business was always of interest but helping people build stability was always the deeper goal. 

After graduating, Aleyda gained experience in the private sector, working at Verizon and Raytheon. Over time, however, her priorities shifted. 

“I wanted to be close to my family and raise my children in the community,” she says. “And I wanted my work to have meaning.” 

In 2013, Aleyda returned to the nonprofit sector, including roles at ACT Lawrence, where she supported families through financial coaching and first time homebuyer education. There, she repeatedly saw the same challenge facing immigrant families. 

“Culturally, many of us are not taught how to handle money,” Aleyda explains. “When we come to this country, we often have to figure it out on our own.” 

That reality deeply shapes how she approaches financial coaching today at Lawrence Community Works. For Aleyda, financial literacy is about preparation, being ready for life’s inevitable challenges. Cars break down. Medical bills appear. Jobs change. 

“I always tell people to save for a rainy day,” she says, “because it always rains. Emergencies will come, and having even a small amount saved can keep a setback from becoming a crisis.” 

Aleyda practices what she teaches. By modeling strong financial habits at home, she saw the generational impact of financial education. One of her daughters became involved in nonprofit youth programming, went on to attend Babson College, earned a master’s degree in entrepreneurship, and now works at American Express in New York. 

“When people see what’s possible,” Aleyda says, “it changes how they think about their own future.” 

That belief in lived experience as a foundation for trust is also central to the journey of Arleen Zorrilla, LCW’s Asset Building Department Director and longtime financial coach. 

Arleen joined Lawrence Community Works in 2007, not as a financial expert, but as a receptionist. Within her first six months, she enrolled in Wallet Wise, LCW’s financial literacy program.  

“That was my first contact with financial education,” Arleen recalls. 

What began as a class soon became a calling. By 2009, Arleen was teaching the very same curriculum that helped her build credit, save money, and plan for her own future. 

“When people see that you’ve walked a similar path, they trust you,” Arleen explains. “That connection is powerful.” 

Nearly 20 years later, Arleen leads LCW’s Asset Building Department, overseeing financial empowerment programs, housing stabilization, and homeownership services, while mentoring and supporting other financial coaches.  

“Financial literacy gives people knowledge and confidence,” she says. “It helps them avoid common mistakes, but it also helps them recover and move forward when challenges arise.” 

To date, LCW has supported 47 Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) cohorts, serving hundreds of participants with goals ranging from homeownership to reducing debt or buying a reliable car. 

One of the biggest misconceptions Arleen encounters is the belief that financial success depends on how much money you make.  

“It’s not about how much money you have,” she explains. “Even with a small income, if you manage it well, you can succeed.” 

Understanding how credit, fees, and interest work can save hundreds or even thousands of dollars over time. More importantly, it brings peace of mind. 

“When people feel in control of their money, their stress goes down,” Arleen says. “Access to financial knowledge shouldn’t be a privilege. Everyone deserves the opportunity to learn the skills that lead to financial stability.” 

One critical mindset shift is moving from shortterm survival thinking to longterm planning. 

“That shift,” Arleen says, “changes everything.” 

Financial stability isn’t built overnight. It’s built through habits. 

“What we do repeatedly with our money matters more than one big decision,” she explains. “Small, everyday choices add up positively or negatively.” 

During coaching sessions, participants often discover habits they didn’t realize were holding them back: overdraft fees, impulse spending, relying on borrowing during emergencies, or avoiding credit reports altogether. These habits aren’t failures, they’re survival strategies. 

“People don’t realize how habits are quietly shaping their financial lives,” she says. “Once they see the pattern, that’s when change becomes possible.” 

Small habits that make a big difference include: 

“Financial stability is built little by little,” Arleen says. “Through habits that protect you.” 

One story that stays with Arleen involves a mother of three who came to LCW during housing instability. She worked hard and paid her bills, but every emergency pushed her deeper into debt. 

Without savings or credit, she depended on informal loans and highinterest borrowing just to get by. 

“She was surviving month to month,” Arleen recalls. “No one had ever helped her look at the whole picture.” 

Through financial coaching, they reviewed spending, looked closely at her credit, and identified where fees and interest were draining her income. 

“She looked at the numbers and said, ‘If I had saved this instead, I could have handled this myself,’” Arleen remembers. 

Together, they built a realistic plan; small savings, safe credit building, and a budget that reflected real life. Over time, the participant stopped borrowing for emergencies, built a savings cushion, and began planning ahead. 

“That’s when everything changes,” Arleen says. “When someone realizes they have control, even if they’re starting small.” 

For anyone beginning their financial literacy journey, Arleen recommends starting here: 

“These steps are eye openers,” she says. “Once people see the full picture, they can start making intentional choices.” 

Both Arleen and Aleyda emphasize that financial knowledge is a form of protection, especially in communities navigating a complex financial system, often in a second language. 

“One of the biggest barriers is trust,” Aleyda explains. “People want to understand where their money is going and who they’re trusting with it.” 

That belief is one reason she pursued certification as a financial coach through United Way. “The certification gave me credentials,” she says, “but more importantly, it showed the community that this knowledge is attainable.” 

Arleen echoes that perspective. “When you have knowledge,” she adds, “no one can take advantage of you. You can spot a bad deal and protect your future.” 

At Lawrence Community Works, financial literacy is not about quick fixes. It is about building understanding, confidence, and habits that last.