GreenPath Financial Wellness is honoring founder Albert O. Horner and the counseling work that still helps people facing debt and financial stress. Publicly available records reviewed for this article do not independently confirm the reported details of his death.
GreenPath reported 121,739 financial counseling services in 2025. Clients also repaid more than $282 million in debt with the nonprofit's help. Horner founded the organization's predecessor in Michigan and led it for more than three decades.
GreenPath says Horner died on September 5, 2026, at age 100. Publicly accessible records reviewed for this article do not independently confirm those details. They are presented here as the organization's report, not as independently verified obituary facts.
A Michigan counseling service
GreenPath began in the early 1960s as a credit counseling service created through the Michigan Credit Union League. An independent consumer-finance review identifies the nonprofit as founded in 1961. It lists free financial consultations, debt management plans and HUD-certified housing counseling among its current services.
Under Horner, Credit Counseling Centers became an accredited nonprofit financial wellness organization. It served individuals and families dealing with debt and other financial problems. Horner was president and CEO from 1961 until he retired in 1997. That period covers more than 30 years of the organization's history.
That approach was practical.
GreenPath says it paired compassion with direct financial help. Horner's model did not treat debt as a personal failing. It helped people understand their options and work toward greater stability.
GreenPath's Michigan identity also has a specific local context. The nonprofit is headquartered in Farmington Hills, a municipality in Oakland County. The City of Farmington Hills and the City of Farmington are separate local governments, despite sharing the name "Farmington." The distinction matters to readers tracking the organization's headquarters, local employment footprint and community history.
Work continues through client services
GreenPath President and CEO Kristen Holt said Horner understood the stigma that often comes with financial hardship. He built an organization intended to help people recover without judgment. GreenPath still describes dignity, practical support and financial education as central to its work.
The 2025 figures offer GreenPath's clearest current measure of that mission. The organization reported 121,739 counseling services during the year. Clients repaid more than $282 million in debt with the nonprofit's help.
The figures describe GreenPath's reported activity across its financial counseling work. They do not mean every client reached the same outcome.
GreenPath is headquartered in Farmington Hills. Its financial counseling is provided by professionals certified by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The services cover budgeting, debt management, housing concerns and broader financial goals.
A public policy description says GreenPath partnered with Robinhood in 2023. It describes the nonprofit's mission as helping people lead financially healthy lives through counseling services. That account matches the organization's continuing focus on accessible financial guidance.
Public nonprofit records also show ongoing activity. A current Kentucky charity-filing summary lists Greenpath, Inc. as a Michigan-based nonprofit. The summary includes 2024 financial figures of $8,151,756 in one IRS-related field and $46,929,170 in another.
The abbreviated fields do not explain those amounts in full. They should be treated as filing data, not as a standalone measure of program spending or client outcomes. The listing appears in the Kentucky charity filing.
Accessing GreenPath help
People seeking assistance can call GreenPath Financial Wellness at (866) 648-8122 or visit www.greenpath.com. The nonprofit says its mission is to empower people to lead financially healthy lives. It traces that purpose to its creation in 1961.
For readers in the Farmington area, GreenPath's headquarters is separate from any municipal program operated by the City of Farmington, Oakland County administration or a Farmington Public Schools board. GreenPath is a separate nonprofit organization. Those public bodies have their own government or education responsibilities.
Horner's importance goes beyond his title and years in the job. He helped shape nonprofit financial counseling around technical guidance and human dignity. The institution he left behind still reports substantial client activity decades after his retirement.
The test is practical.
A founder's legacy can be measured by whether an institution continues to provide useful help to people under financial pressure. GreenPath's reported counseling volume and debt repayment figures show that Horner's founding purpose remains in operation. His Michigan contribution still carries public value for families seeking greater financial stability.
