What a Year!

By Karen R. Goodfriend, CPA, PFS

This is the last “President’s Message” I will write, as my term as chapter president is about to end. With the financial events that unfolded, this year wasn’t what I anticipated—and I think it is safe to say it isn’t what anyone expected. However, what has been gratifying to me is becoming convinced more than ever how much our profession has to offer in service to clients, employers and the public through our financial literacy efforts. My hope is that CPAs will identify with this theme and engage all the more with their community through our chapter and CalCPA at large.

The financial crisis has profoundly impacted our economy, profession, clients and us, as individuals. I remain confident, though, that our profession will play an instrumental role in helping our clients and the public navigate through these challenging times. Our profession has earned a high level of trust from clients and the public. Such trust is valued all the more as we see all too many scandals come to light during these difficult times.

As the upcoming year’s chapter leaders assume or continue their roles, I encourage you to get to know these dedicated individuals and communicate your thoughts and questions to them. This is an enthusiastic group—watch for some excellent upcoming programs. Our chapter officers, board and committee chairs are a diverse lot that represent our membership across the age spectrum and include sole proprietors, plus members working in multi-office firms, industry and public practice. For example, our new president, Michael Thompson, has an industry background. From his other leadership roles within CalCPA, including the Education Foundation, Mike will bring great ideas to our chapter. I am confident Mike will lead our chapter well.

Finally I want to thank and acknowledge all who contributed such great ideas and programs during my term, including the committee chairs, directors and officers.  And a very special thanks to Jane Dunbar, our Program Associate, who makes it all happen.

I look forward to continuing my involvement with CalCPA and the chapter. Let’s stay in touch!
— Karen R. Goodfriend, CPA, PFS

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 at 4:54 pm and is filed under President's Message. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.