Accounting graduate Chrissy Phillips ’04 was the controller for Shenandoah Growers, a leading provider of fresh herbs in the United States. In March 2010, she stepped away from that role in order to give more attention to her family. Today she works as a consultant in Harrisonburg, preparing financial analyses and forecasts, as well as assisting clients with accounting systems setup and accounting processes and procedures. Photo by Jon Styer.
If you count the number of names in bold in the foregoing articles on EMU alumni whose professional lives are heavily intertwined with “numbers,” you’ll arrive at over 150. And yet many others, whom we were in contact with (or at least fully aware of), are not in those pages. Here is our supplementary list, loosely organized by area of work. We missed including you? Fill out emu.edu/crossroads/update, and your information will be published in an upcoming Crossroads.
BANKING & FINANCIAL ADVISING
Steve Daniel Althouse, class of ’97, Reading, PA // Bank of New York Mellon Fund Accounting Supervisor, King of Prussia, Pa. // “I currently work on the Metropolitan West fund family. Fixed income bonds have been my cup of tea for my entire time in the business.”
Wendel L. King ’93, Petersburg, PA // Joined Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. in 2006 as an investment advisor specializing in 401(k) management and group benefit plan design with Comprehensive Benefit Marketing Services Inc. Also a benefits broker for Comprehensive Benefit Marketing Services, Inc.
Sid Ruth ’98, Telford, PA // Has both CPA and CFP; works for Franconia Insurance and Financial Services. // “Tax preparation and audit work didn’t stoke my fires,” so he did a couple of years of classwork and took two-day exam to become a Certified Financial Plannner, a designation with the requirement that the client’s interests are put first.
Joe Slagell ’92, Harrisonburg, VA // Mortgage loan officer, Wells Fargo.
CONTROLLERS, ACCOUNTANTS, BOOKKEEPERS
Rich Beckler ’79, Mechanicsville, VA // Regional controller, Care Virginia Management LLC
B.J. Gerber ’04, Kidron, OH // Does accounting for Gerber Poultry, 60-year-old business begun by his grandparents. The plant processes chickens and employs more than 300 people in the local area. // “Numbers can be manipulated to appear in specific ways or mislead people. Providing accurate data in formats that are helpful for moving the business forward and problem-solving are challenges that I work with regularly.”
Kenneth Herr ’72, Morgantown, PA // Controller for Dutchland Inc., which specializes in engineering, designing, and manufacturing water and wastewater storage and treatment systems. It produces and installs structural precast post-tensioned concrete.
Jenny Bishop Hummel ’94, Weyers Cave, VA // Controller, Pactiv LLC in Grottoes, Va. // Treasurer, Shenandoah Valley Autism Partnership.
Dan Dentamore-Hunsberger ’83, Harrisonburg, VA // Manager, internal control-compliance, Shentel Management Company // “Accounting is far from dry.… The only thing constant in accounting is change: new regulations, processes, products, locations in the business, acquisitions, divestitures, capital projects, personnel, accounting systems, technologies.… In the 30 years since I completed my degree at EMU, the changes in accounting and business are hard to digest.”
Jeremy Kratz ’99, Harrisonburg, VA // CPA, controller at Ariake USA, subsidiary of a multinational headquartered in Japan that is one of the world’s largest producers of stocks and bases, using meat, poultry, seafood, and vegetable products. // “One unique aspect of my position with Ariake is… dealing with cultural and communication differences. Oftentimes my Japanese counterparts are more direct than we tend to be in the U.S., and respect is very important to them. My cross-cultural experiences at EMU have helped lead to mostly positive interactions and relationships.”
E. Rick Miller ’92, Dillsburg, PA // CPA, senior living services manager at Padden, Guerrini & Associates P.C. Established in 1984 by H. David Padden, the firm has grown to include four additional shareholders and 19 full-time employees and specializes in serving senior living facilities, credit unions, and small businesses.
Miriam Mumaw ’61, Arlington, VA // Controller, Gammon and Grange, PC in McLean, Va., a law firm with national reputation in nonprofit and church law.
Karen Devers Parker ’11, Raphine, VA // Staff accountant, Augusta County Services Authority in Verona.
Amy Rush ’91, Harrisonburg, VA // CPA at Clark & Bradshaw, PC, a law firm // Works with attorneys and clients on estate issues, wills and tax preparation, as well as internal accounting for the company.
Geraldine “Gerry” Rush ’63, Harrisonburg, VA // Learning coordinator, PBMares LLP // CPA who previously worked as senior tax manager, advising on taxes, estate planning and investment planning. // Finished accounting degree from JMU at age 47 after teaching chemistry, physics and math at EMU and EMHS, and then staying home with children, including daughter Amy, also a CPA.
Andy Saltzman ’95, East Peoria, IL // CPA at the accounting firm of Heinold-Banwart Ltd // “EMU was one of the best times in my life. I was well prepared to sit for the CPA exam with a good foundation of accounting principles.”
Isaac Shelly ’09, Harrisonburg, VA // Accounts payable specialist, Rosetta Stone, a globally focused company that specializes in language-learning software.
Ryan Siegrist ’01, Lancaster, PA // CPA manager who performs a variety of tax, audit, and accounting services for clients of Hershey Advisors PC, serving clients in Lancaster, Lebanon, York, and Chester County areas of Pennsylvania.
Lois Johnson Stark ’81, Springfield, OR // Bookkeeper, office manager and CPA // Something to Crow About Quilt Store (Springfield); Bright Knight Property Management and Combined Realty Services (in Eugene) //“Bookkeepers tend to enjoy working alone, they are not necessarily ‘people’ people. Bookkeepers are methodical.”
Clayton Suydam ’05, Lancaster, PA // Controller-CPA at Premier Custom-Built, a family-owned company in New Holland, Pa., that specializes in the “ultra high-end cabinetry market.”
C. “Rick” Williams Jr. ’89, Springfield, VA // Controller-CPA at Criterion Systems Inc., a 100% employee-owned IT services company providing high-end information technology and systems integration services for many of the U.S. government’s “mission-critical environments.”
Lawrence Yoder ’87, Broadway, VA // CPA, Horizon Accountants // “Marketplace minister & owner” // “You can have the best ideas and concepts that you think are really good, but if the numbers do not support them, they’re worthless.”
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Greg Beachy ’81, Louisville, KY // Vice president & capital markets managing director of Farm Credit Mid-America, a co-op that provides credit to agricultural producers and rural residents (90,000 borrowing members in Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee) // Leads a team that manages $4+ billion in assets. // Has worked for the co-op 30+ years.
Steve Breidigan ’92, Douglassville, PA // CFO and risk manager for Rockhill Mennonite Community; CPA; congregational treasurer; volunteer financial counselor for Pottstown Cluster of Religious Communities.
Ross Collingwood ’74, Salem, OR // Co-owner & financial advisor, Great Oak Financial Group.
Donna (Metzler) Glunt ’91, West Liberty, OR // Office manager, Link Engineering Co., which tests brakes on commercial vehicles. // Duties include the local accounting duties, marketing, HR support and DOT compliance management.
Marlin Groff ’79, Lancaster, PA // CFO, Lancaster Mennonite School // “Schools have multiple bottom lines – enrollment targets, students’ needs, happy staff, attractive buildings… – and maybe that’s both the fun and the challenge of this work.”
Shaun Hackman ’99, Green Lane, PA // CFO & controller, TH Properties , custom home builder serving Bucks, Chester, Montgomery and Lehigh counties.
David Hostetler ’81, Goshen, IN // Financial manager, Schrock Homes Inc., a building company.
Eugene Klassen, MA ’92 (leadership), Abbotsford, British Columbia // CFO, Communitas Supportive Care Society, a nonprofit, faith-based social services agency providing care in communities in Greater Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, North Vancouver Island and the Okanagan.
Steve Martin ’88, Ephrata, PA // Finance director, Eastern Mennonite Missions
Gary Sommers ’98, North Canton, OH // CFO and CPA, HRM Enterprises, Inc. based in Hartville, Ohio // Hartville Kitchen Restaurant, Inc., Hartville Kitchen Foods, Inc., Hartville Marketplace, Inc., Hartville Hardware, Inc., Hart Design, Inc., Top Advantage Surfaces, Inc.
Grace Witmer Styer ’79, Greenford, OH // CFO-COO, Das Dutch Village Inn; CFO & vice president, Witmers Inc. (farm-equipment and construction business); owner, The Dutch Cupboard.
Joni Yoder, class ’87, Winston Salem, NC // Director of finance, Habitat for Humanity of Forsyth County.
HARD TO CLASSIFY
Russel “Russ” Kennel ’71, Keizer, OR // Insurance examiner – market analyst, State of Oregon // “We regulate all insurance companies doing business in the State of Oregon. I review claims and financial data to ensure compliance with statutes, rules and regulations.” // Board member of Hope Village in Canby Oregon, chair of finance committee (7 years) and also board member of Mennonite Services Northwest, which provides management services to Hope Village, Mennonite Village and other adult and residential facilities.
Susan Murphy Carter ’09, Staunton, VA // Accounts receivable technician // Blue Ridge Community College.
Blaine Derstine, class of ’81, Lancaster, PA // Inventory manager for all of the Ten Thousand Villages company stores.
Melesa “Lesa” McCallister Duncan ’04, Massanutten, VA // Financial analyst at MillerCoors LLC in Elkton.
Abby Griffith ’12, Pineville, VA // Senior production services analyst at MillerCoors LLC in Elkton.
Tim Hedrick ’94, Waterloo, Ontario // Senior financial analyst, Sun Life Financial.
Doug Horst ’92, Pinson, AL // Program director, Gateway (Financial Freedom program) // “Our role is meeting with families and individuals who have questions or even struggles with their personal finances and we become a financial ‘coach’ for them. This normally includes assisting them with establishing a workable budget and then helping them take steps towards accomplishment of goals – including things like starting-increasing savings, getting out of debt (particularly credit card debt), avoiding foreclosure on a home, etc. “
Arthur “Art” Stoltzfus ’82, Elkhart, IN // Lender, community development, and acquisitions manager, National Equity Fund.
J. Denice “Denny” Swartz, class of ’64, Flushing, MI // Retired financial analyst, property accounting, General Motors, Pontiac, Mich. // Began his career at $2.55 per hour on the assembly line at Fisher Body Plant No. 1// “One of the most interesting and fascinating aspects of the job for the analyst was to see [a new] asset, inspect the installation process to verify that the accounting is correct and to see the asset in operation. [It] could be a small press or a huge transfer press, a new building, conveyor line, paint booth, robot, dynamometer, forklift truck, highway vehicle or even a new test facility and test track.”
INSURANCE
Andrew “Andy” Clemmer ’92, Hagerstown, MD // Agent for KMS Cumberland Valley Insurance.
Daniel Goyette Heacock ’78, Marysville, PA // Principal of Daniel G. Heacock Insurance.
Jimmy Grandstaff ’83, Luray, VA // Principal of Grandstaff Insurance Agency.
Julie Mumaw Lambert, class of ’75, West Salem, OH // Started work at Westfield Insurance in 2001 as a trainee for commercial processors, entering information to provide a printed policy. // Now an underwriter assistant.
Rodney Lehman ’99, Lititz, PA // Licensed manager, commercial lines at Lehman Insurance // Works alongside father, Keith Lehman// Has his CISR and CIC designations.
Philip Showalter ’92, Lynchburg, VA // Executive vice president, Campbell Insurance, 40-person company operating three divisions, commercial, employee benefits and personal insurance.
