A rekey is the quiet fix for a house where too many people still have keys. You are not replacing the door. You are changing the pins inside the cylinder so the old keys stop working, then cutting new keys for the people you name. Done right, it takes one visit. Done wrong, you have a new lock and the same problem.

Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.

Before the locksmith arrives

Start with a list of every lock that opens onto the outside: front door, back door, side door, the garage entry into the house, and any gate. Note which ones share a key today. Tell your father, in plain words, what is changing and why, because he still owns the house and the decision belongs in front of him. Then write the names of the people who will hold copies. Keep the list short. Every key is a promise that someone will be reachable.

Ask the locksmith four things before anyone is booked. Will you rekey the existing cylinders or replace them? Which locks can you cover in one visit? What ID do you check before you cut a copy? Will you give a written count of the keys cut, and who keeps the record of the cylinder's key code?

During the rekey

Watch the count. Every new key should be accounted for on paper before it leaves the bench. Ask that all the old keys be collected, or, if they cannot be collected, that the locksmith confirms in writing that they are void. Do not accept a key set you have not counted.

Test before the van leaves

Test each new key in each lock from both sides, with the door open and then closed. Throw and retract the deadbolt with each key. Confirm the old key fails. Check the latch and the strike plate, because if the bolt catches on the frame, the door will fight someone at night. Ask the locksmith to fix alignment before he leaves, not on a callback.

Log every copy

Write one page. List each lock, the number of keys cut, the name of each person who holds one, the day each copy was handed over, and where the spare is kept. Keep the page in the same folder as the legal papers, not in a kitchen drawer. When someone leaves the list, the key comes back and the page changes with it.

Your next move tonight: write the names of the people who will hold a key, then call the locksmith and ask the four questions above.