Tax-Aide Volunteer Never Gives Up on Service

One of the most memorable experiences for Harv Grassian in his 13 years as an AARP Foundation Tax-Aide volunteer was with Elizabeth Seaver, an 83-year-old retired music teacher and one of his taxpayer clients for many of those years. The unique way their story unfolded over the last couple of years serves as testimony to the dedication and skill of the volunteers who devote their time to providing free tax-filing assistance through the program.

Early in 2024, Harv got a voicemail from Elizabeth thanking him for his efforts on her behalf a couple of years before. “I am just thrilled that it all worked to my advantage, thanks to you!” said Elizabeth in the message. “You are a master in sorting all this out and giving me the wonderful outcome.” (See below for an audio clip of the  message.)

It all started when Elizabeth received a letter from the IRS in late 2020 stating she owed over $10,000 in additional taxes on her 2018 return. She was understandably scared and confused. Elizabeth had gone to her local AARP Foundation Tax-Aide site for many years to have her taxes prepared by IRS-certified volunteer preparer Harv Grassian. How could there possibly be a discrepancy, she wondered.

Although Elizabeth was sure there was a mistake, she wrote a check for the full amount. She told her cousin about the issue in 2021, and she suggested that Elizabeth call the AARP 800 number, which she did. That generated a ticket that was sent to the state coordinator, who happened to be Harv. He recognized Elizabeth’s name and remembered her. "I went into Tax Slayer and found her return. Went through it — I had done the quality review on it. Of course, it was perfect," Harv says jokingly. But everything did seem to be reported properly based on Elizabeth's documents.

Harv, who had been volunteering with Tax-Aide since 2011 after retiring from a 40-year career at Westinghouse/Siemens, didn't initially realize the letter from the IRS was legitimate. "At first I suspected the letter she got was a scam," he says.

The Tax-Aide location was closed because of the pandemic, but Harv arranged to meet Elizabeth in the parking lot of their regular site so he could examine the letter. It was legitimate — but incorrect.

Harv had Elizabeth authorize him to communicate with the IRS on her behalf. He printed out a report showing her income was correctly reported and wrote a letter to the IRS detailing and proving the mistake on their end. "It was a total screwup by the IRS," Harv states. "It was wrong, and I told them."

Thanks to Harv's dedication, the IRS corrected the error and Elizabeth was able to recover the $10,000 she had paid, plus interest. Reflecting on moments like this, Harv says, "The gratitude that comes out of them, especially when you find something that gets them a couple bucks more, they're over the moon."

There’s another part to the story. When Harv got Elizabeth’s voicemail, he shared it with colleagues, who encouraged him to follow up with Elizabeth to see if she’d be willing to share it publicly. He tried calling her but both numbers he had for her had been disconnected. Then he found out her home had been sold, so her address was no help either. With some dedicated sleuthing over the course of a few days, he found out she had recently moved to an assisted living facility, so he called them. To protect their resident’s privacy, they only agreed to leave her a message.

Not long after that, Harv got a call from Elizabeth, who says, “I was just dumbfounded when he called because I was wondering who was going to do my taxes this year with all my changes.”

Says Harv, “When I first called she said, ‘How did you find me?’ That’s a long story,” he says with a chuckle.

Harv continues to volunteer each season at the same site near his home in Longwood, Florida, and he and Elizabeth have a bond that goes beyond preparer and client. “He’s my guardian angel,” says Elizabeth.

And Harv, now a regional coordinator, still listens to Elizabeth’s voicemail every now and then to remind him of why he volunteers with Tax-Aide.

Learn more about AARP Foundation Tax-Aide and how to become a Tax-Aide Volunteer.

Read more stories about how our programs have helped people find hope, and about the volunteers who give so much of themselves to help others.