I am also a retired teacher. Years ago one of my third grade students was struggling with reading and asked if he could stay after school to learn more. During one of the after school sessions, he told me that after I teach him something, he goes home to teach it to his dad, who never learned to read! I loved that kid, would love to know how he is doing now.
Some parents just never had the encouragement or opportunities, but want their kids to have more and I think that attitude is awesome. During the lasts few years of my career, parents seemed to be so much more involved and encouraged their kids to learn, even though they were dealing with moms having to work, single parent households, etc.