Our Staff
Although The CPA Group is one of the larger local accounting firms in the greater Grand Rapids area, our clients still receive personal and prompt service.
All of our certified public accountants are members of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants (MACPA). Each certified public accountant is licensed by the State of Michigan and fulfills all continuing education requirements according to state standards. Our staff is active in the community, serving on local chambers of commerce, at schools and in churches.
Shareholders
Dennis Bergsma, CPA
Shareholder
Denny has been with the firm since 1983 and serves as the managing partner. He specializes in assisting with all aspects of tax and business planning. He graduated from Ferris State University with a B.S. degree in accounting.
Chad Groggel, CPA
Shareholder
Chad works with a variety of small and mid-sized business clients, as well as individuals. He assists them with their tax, accounting, and financial planning needs. Chad also provides general business consulting and QuickBooks training and support. He has a BBA, magna cum laude, from Grand Valley State University.
Tim Rykse, CPA
Shareholder
Tim provides accounting and taxation services for a wide variety of clients including manufacturers, construction, restaurants, real estate and service industries. He also provides individuals with tax service and trains clients to use QuickBooks. He has a BBA from Grand Valley State University. He previously worked as a controller for many years with a manufacturing company.
Jan Vander Weide, CPA
Shareholder
Jan has been with The CPA GROUP since September 1993. She serves a wide variety of clients in all areas of accounting, tax preparation and tax planning. She has a BBA from Davenport University.
John Bibbler, CPA
Shareholder
John joined the firm in 1988 in a merger with his prior firm. John acts as an advisor and consultant to numerous small and mid-market businesses in the areas of litigation support, accounting, and tax. He has represented clients before various tax authorities on a variety of issues. He has a B.S. in accounting from Western Michigan University. John was formerly an auditor for the State of Michigan.
Jack Jipping, CPA
Shareholder
Professional Staff
Deanna Brown, CPA
Accountant
Deanna provides accounting and tax services to a wide variety of clients. She also trains clients in the use of QuickBooks and consults in other accounting software. She has a BBA from Michigan State University.
Lori Engen, J.D., CPA, MST
Accountant
Lori concentrates her work in all areas of taxation. This includes corporate, partnership, individual, estate and trust matters.
She has a B.A. in legal administration and a MST from Grand Valley State University. Lori also holds a J.D. from Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
Jon Feyen, CPA
Accountant
Jon has experience working with small business owners, nonprofit organizations, and high net worth individuals. He works with clients to provide accounting and taxation services that maximize the client’s potential. Jon graduated summa cum laude from Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania with a B.S.B.A. degree in accounting.
Kelly Flietstra, CPA
Accountant
Kelly works on audit and review services for businesses, employee benefit plans and non-profit organizations. She also works on business taxation. She has a BBA from Grand Valley State University.
Steve Helder, CPA
Accountant
Steve provides clients with accounting and tax services. He also provides technology services for the firm.
He has a B.S. in accounting from Calvin College.
Brenda Jansen, CPA
Accountant
Brenda joined the firm in June 2018 and brings experience from her time working for local businesses and nonprofits. She provides Quickbooks support, bookkeeping, payroll tax filing and tax preparation services for individuals and small business owners. Brenda graduated summa cum laude from Cornerstone University with a B.S. in Accounting. She also received her Masters of Business Administration (M.B.A.) from Cornerstone.
Peggy Myaard, CPA, MST
Accountant
Peggy focuses her work in taxation with an emphasis on agriculture and fiduciary work.
She has a B.S in accounting from Michigan State University and a MST from Grand Valley State University.
Kay Snyder, CPA
Accountant
Kay provides audit and review services for businesses and employee benefit plans. She also works on individual and business taxation. She has a BBA from Western Michigan University.
Eric Watson, CPA
Accountant
Eric joined The CPA GROUP after working for more than 5 years for a ‘Big Four’ accounting firm. There he specialized in small business owners and high net worth individuals. Eric will continue to focus on tax compliance for the firm with an emphasis on corporations, partnerships, and individuals. He has an MSA from Grand Valley State University.
Kim Boer
Staff Accountant
Kim provides a variety of services from accounting software, principles and practice, to tax and research. Kim’s background was 20 years as an Accounting Manager for a local manufacturing retailer that had presence in multiple states. Prior to making the move to public accounting and tax for the last 7 years. She has her BS in Accounting as well as Computer Science from Davenport University.
Lorie Emelander
Accountant
Michelle Hendrickson
Accountant
Michelle is a graduate of Grand Valley State University, with a BBA, majoring in accounting and finance. She provides a range of services for clients, including accounting, tax and QuickBooks consulting as a QuickBooks Online Proadvisor.
Samantha Jelsema
Accountant
Samantha joined The CPA Group in September 2022. She provides a variety of services, including bookkeeping, Quickbooks support, and tax preparation for individuals and small businesses. Samantha graduated summa cum laude from Grand Valley State University with a BBA in Accounting and Finance.
Amanda Wagenmaker
Accountant
Amanda provides accounting and tax services for clients and also handles administrative services for the firm.
She has a B.S. in business management from Calvin College.
Terry Woodwyk
Accountant
Terry provides accounting and tax services including the use of Quickbooks.
He has a BBA in accounting and a MSA in accounting from Grand Valley State University.
Sally Steffes
Tax and Accounting Manager
Sally joined our office in August 2022. She works with small and mid-sized businesses in a variety of industries, assisting them with their tax compliance, planning, and consulting needs. She works with individual clients, as well. Sally graduated with a BS in Accounting from DePaul University in Chicago.
administrative Professional Staff
Bobbi
Hahn
Accountant
Assistant
Bobbi joined our firm in June 2015 and she is a wealth of knowledge. She maintains our billing and account receivables. Bobbi also supports clients with accounting services such as bill paying and setting up payment arrangements as needed. She has a BA from Calvin College.
Ann-Marie VanHeulen
Firm Administrative Coordinator
Ann-Marie joined our firm in October 2020, she is an experienced Administrative Professional, she is devoted to many different tasks around the office. She comes from over 12 years of administrative and leadership experience in the banking and accounting industries. She brings a range of organizational skills to the firm.
Bethany
Kelly
Administrative Receptionist
Bethany joined The CPA GROUP in June 2022. Bethany comes from traveling far and near with her family as her husband served in the Air Force. During her travel, she has worked at different Physical Therapy offices on both clinical and clerical sides. She brings wonderful communication and organizational skills to our office. Bethany also graduated from Hope College with her Bachelor of Arts in Exercise Science.
Dawn
Brumels
Administrative Assistant
Dawn started with us in December 2015. She works part-time helping with estimate reminders and many other administrative tasks. During tax season, she is here more often and helps with processing tax returns and payroll documents. Dawn is a wonderful asset to our admin team.
Karen Lohmann
Administrative Assistant
Karen performs a variety of administrative tasks part-time. She joined the firm in October 2021 with a background in the banking and finance industry. Most recently, she worked at TCF as a Mortgage Closer. She brings a wide array of knowledge to the firm.