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

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.

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.

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.

Sally Steffes, CPA

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. 

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

Lorie joined The CPA Group in September 2020. She has 17 years of experience working for a smaller accounting firm. She brings a wide variety of skills to The CPA Group to help in accounting and in tax preparation.
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.

Lori Nieuwbeerta

Accountant

​In May 2023, Lori became a member of The CPA Group. She holds a BBA from Northwood University and has 20 years of experience in accounting, specifically in the manufacturing industry. She offers an array of services, including accounting, tax assistance, and QuickBooks support, to small businesses.

Kay Snyder

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.

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.

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

Our firm welcomed Ann-Marie in October 2020 as an experienced Administrative Professional who is dedicated to handling various tasks around the office. With over 12 years of administrative and leadership experience in the banking and accounting industries, she possesses a wide range of organizational skills that are valuable to our team.
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.