Karen’s affinity for accounting began at a very young age while growing up in Portland. Her father is also an accountant, and the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. A favorite pastime for Karen was playing with her dad’s adding machine and writing pretend checks. She also loved to unload groceries with her mom and tally up the prices on the adding machine to ensure the receipt was correct.

It’s not surprising then that Karen went on to graduate from Gonzaga University with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. She enjoys watching her beloved Zags play basketball, and her favorite NBA retired player is Gonzaga alum, John Stockton.

After graduating from Gonzaga, Karen began her 30+ year accounting career with Price Waterhouse as an auditor in their Portland office where she also earned her CPA license. She later transferred to two of their Canadian offices where she worked in both their audit and expatriate tax groups.  After nearly 8 years with Price Waterhouse, Karen returned to Portland and worked at a variety of companies, including Intel, Nike and Deloitte Tax, and most recently at the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust in Vancouver. She has experience in almost all areas of accounting, and she still loves working with numbers, as well as reconciling accounts, above all else.

Karen is outgoing, organized and highly detail oriented, which is why accounting is truly the perfect profession for her! She spends much of her free time with her husband at their vacation home on the northern Oregon Coast, where she enjoys going for long walks on the beach with their three dogs, reading and relaxing. Karen also loves decorating her two homes for any and all holidays, hosting dinner parties, doing yardwork and, of course, maintaining the family finances.