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A familiar face has returned to Gilmore Jasion Mahler. Lauren Webber is back on board as a Tax Supervisor and member of GJM's Construction Specialist Team and Manufacturing Specialist Team. Enjoy this Q&A. Welcome back, Lauren!

When did you start employment at GJM? 10/28/19 – formerly employed 2015-2017

Why did you choose the accounting industry? I like working with people and numbers.

What do you like best about accounting? Helping people solve problems/reach goals.

Are you from the Toledo area originally? If not, where are you from? I am from Toledo.

What do you like about living in Northwest Ohio? I love the greater Toledo area!  It’s a community-minded and engaging place to be.

Anything you’d like to share about your past professional experience? I am proud to have been the Owens Corning Volunteer of the Year in 2018.

Do you have any pets, hobbies, family? I have way too many pets- cats, dogs, fish, reptiles, small mammals, you name it.

How do you like to spend your free time? With pets/family/friends.  I also enjoy running, painting, reading, playing piano.

Favorite song or music? That’s too hard to pick!

Favorite book or movie? Book- A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving | Movie- Donnie Darko

Are you involved in any community organizations, do any volunteer work? I am the treasurer for Paws & Whiskers Cat Shelter and for Toledo Streets Newspaper.

What is something people may be surprised to find out about you? I hope to have farm animals one day.   

Gilmore Jasion Mahler’s (GJM’s) Mary Jo Pitzen, CPA has been promoted to partner with the firm. Mary Jo has been with GJM for over 12 years. She is a member of the firm’s Construction Specialist Team. Mary Jo provides tax planning, compliance and business advisory services for individuals and all types of businesses in a variety of industries, including manufacturing, construction, healthcare, and professional services.

“This is a very well-earned promotion. Mary Jo provides great client service and has done an excellent job in helping to continue growth in our construction practice,” says GJM Managing Partner Kevin Gilmore.

Mary Jo is a member of the Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA) Northwest Ohio chapter. She is also a member of the local chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), holding a board position with the organization for the last four years.

A graduate of The University of Toledo, Mary Jo joined GJM upon graduation and has been with the firm ever since.

“I love who I work with, both within the firm and the clients we serve. We have a great group of people at all levels who work well together, share and encourage each other to grow. I love our team-oriented atmosphere.”

Mary Jo is also a graduate of Leadership Toledo and will soon be a graduate of the Partner Development Program (PDP) through the RSM US Alliance. The program offers training to improve leadership skills.

“My biggest take away from PDP is a better understanding of who I am. It will make me a better coach for young people coming up in the firm and allow me to better serve my clients as well.”

Mary Jo lives in Waterville with her husband and 6-year-old son.

Established in 1996, Gilmore Jasion Mahler, LTD (GJM) is the largest public accounting firm in Northwest Ohio, with offices in Maumee and Findlay. Locally owned, GJM offers cloud-based accounting and provides comprehensive services including assurance, business advisory, tax, risk advisory, healthcare management and outsourced accounting. GJM’s professionals specialize in industries including construction & real estate, healthcare, manufacturing & distribution and utilities.

Stamps were 32 cents. DVDs launched in Japan. Dolly the sheep was cloned and Tickle me Elmo was the holiday toy sensation. 

The year was 1996, the same year that two young professionals decided to go into business for themselves. Little did they know their decision would benefit thousands of businesses, families and individuals, and better our community as a whole.

In March of 1996, Adele Jasion and Kevin Gilmore were both working in the accounting industry in northwest Ohio. They decided to team up and break out on their own, establishing their own firm called Gilmore & Jasion. With only 11 employees, they launched their new business just a month before the April 15 tax deadline, a bold move in the accounting business.

”I was always confident that we could become the alternative to what is now the Big Four,” says Gilmore, referring to the top national firms. “I just wanted to be the best. I wanted to be the firm that people wanted to go to. That was my vision.” 

Partner Adele Jasion says there was a need at the time for a high quality local firm with diverse resources that provided personal attention to clients.  She says Gilmore & Jasion was able to meet that need.

“The timing was actually good. The big firms were shedding clients, reinventing themselves, more interested in the very large public company work, not so much in the privately-held companies. Right place, right time,” she says. “We had the skillset to service those clients.”

In the fall of 1996, Andy Mahler came on board as a partner, giving the firm its current name Gilmore Jasion Mahler, LTD. Mahler retired in 2008. Five years later, Pry Professional Group in Findlay merged into Gilmore Jasion Mahler. Now, with two offices and over a hundred employees, GJM is northwest Ohio’s largest public accounting firm.  

The last 20 years have brought remarkable change to the industry and to client service. There was no email when GJM was established. Tax returns were printed out and mailed. Now, technology has catapulted the Firm forward with cloud-based accounting services. Sharing information and documents with clients has never been faster, more convenient or as secure.  

Those choosing the profession have also changed. Adele Jasion says it wasn’t common to have a woman co-owner of a CPA firm in the mid 1990’s. She describes the accounting industry as a typically male-dominated field for decades. But, she says, that has changed slowly over time.  

“I’m very proud to say that of the fourteen partners we have today at GJM, six of them are women. We’re providing a good example for young women choosing our profession.”

“GJM is far from a “stuffy accounting firm” to say the least,” says one such young woman, Audit Associate Lauren Grana. “It is not an everyman for themselves environment where no one communicates and keeps to themselves. Everyone is encouraged to ask questions when they don’t understand, share discoveries that others may benefit from, and share victories together.”

Gilmore Jasion Mahler has challenged the typical CPA firm model from the very start, working closely with clients, getting to know their businesses and building a responsive, friendly relationship. The firm has developed expertise in particular industries, including healthcare, construction & real estate, utilities and manufacturing & distribution. Services cover a broad range from business advisory to tax to business valuation. The Firm has exceled as a community partner as well, supporting charitable causes in both the Toledo area and Findlay-Hancock County region. Many employees sit on the boards of local nonprofits and the Firm is involved in events year-round to support many organizations and causes.

Gilmore Jasion Mahler, LTD is ever evolving to meet client needs and attract new talent, but one thing that hasn’t changed is the supportive nature of a business that started twenty years ago with nothing more than a vision.

“Add good people, add good clients,” says Gilmore. “It wasn’t about being big, it was about being the best quality and with that would come success and growth. We have a great deal to be proud of.”

Mary Jo Pitzen is a senior manager in the Gilmore Jasion Mahler tax department. She works with clients across many industries, but has a focus on the construction industry. Mary Jo is also a board member for the Toledo chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC).

Established in 1996, Gilmore Jasion Mahler, LTD (GJM) is the largest public accounting firm in Northwest Ohio, with offices in Maumee and Findlay. Locally owned, GJM offers cloud-based accounting services and provides comprehensive services including assurance, business advisory, tax, risk advisory and healthcare management. The Firm’s professionals specialize in industries including construction & real estate, healthcare, manufacturing & distribution and utilities.

Want to save money on your 2018 tax bill? Sure you do! Things have changed dramatically with tax reform, but there are still ways to save.

Many taxpayers will benefit from the reduced tax rates and expanded tax brackets included in the new tax law. The law’s changes also make it less likely that as many taxpayers will itemize deductions. They will opt to use the higher standard deduction, which nearly doubled for individuals to $12,000 with the passage of the new law. The Married Filing Jointly standard deduction increased to $24,000 and the Head of Household standard deduction went up to $18,000.

If you’re among those who will wind up taking the increased standard deduction, be aware that payments for taxes, mortgage interest, and charitable donations will no longer yield any tax savings. But, there are still strategies for some taxpayers to reduce their tax liability while taking the standard deduction and making charitable deductions.

One way to save is using something called a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) when donating to a favorite charity. A QCD allows a transfer of up to $100,000 per year from an IRA directly to a qualified charity. Here’s the catch: it is only available to those who have reached Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) age which is 70½. Any amount processed as a QCD counts towards the Required Minimum Distribution requirement while at the same time reducing the taxable portion of the distribution. By lowering both adjusted gross income and taxable income, the taxpayer has a lower federal tax liability and potentially a lower state tax liability and the charitable organization receives a contribution. 

Some important things to remember when choosing to use a QCD:

• Notify your tax preparer that this has been done since the custodian of the IRA is not required to specially identify the QCD on form 1099-R. Otherwise the QCD may be accidentally reported as taxable income
• If RMD payments are set up to be paid automatically, the payment may need to be halted or adjusted to leave funds available for a QCD

Another strategy that applies to taxpayers of any age is so-called “bunching” of tax deductions, or grouping them together to get the most tax benefit. If the total of your eligible medical expenses, allowed state and local tax payments, mortgage interest and charitable contributions is close to the standard deduction, it might be beneficial to bunch itemized deductions every other year so that the total exceeds the standard deduction.

Some other thoughts on “bunching”:

• Consider getting elective surgeries and expensive dental procedures or buying new glasses all in the same year
• Prepay real estate taxes to reach the new $10,000 limitation on state and local tax deductions
• Double up on regular charitable donations every other year

By bunching as many deductions into one year as possible, the total may surpass the standard deduction. On the off years you can take advantage of the standard deduction.

Tax Supervisor Marie Saner, EA contributed this blog. With Gilmore Jasion Mahler for 14 years, Marie works with individuals and businesses across many industries. She is a member of the Firm’s Construction Specialist Team.

 If you’re interested in receiving more tax planning ideas right to your inbox, click here to sign up for GJM’s free quarterly tax newsletter Focus.

Established in 1996, Gilmore Jasion Mahler, LTD (GJM) is the largest public accounting firm in Northwest Ohio, with offices in Maumee and Findlay. Locally owned, GJM offers cloud-based accounting services and provides comprehensive services including assurance, business advisory, tax, risk advisory and healthcare management. The Firm’s professionals specialize in industries including construction & real estate, healthcare, manufacturing & distribution and utilities.