David Jacobs

David has over 25 years of public accounting experience, the majority of which has been spent serving small local businesses and individual clients. As a tax specialist, David consults with businesses on wide-ranging issues such as entity selection, business acquisitions, exit strategies, structuring tax-efficient sales and exchanges and transfers of wealth between generations. His business experience includes serving high-tech, retail, agricultural, non profit and professional service firms. He also specializes in personal tax issues of real estate, wealth accumulation, retirement planning, trusts and estates. David takes a personal and entrepreneurial approach to problem solving and is a strong advocate for local small businesses.

David is licensed as a CPA in California and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. He sits on numerous boards, including the Dominican Hospital Foundation, the Museum of Art and History at the McPherson Center, the Ventana Wilderness Alliance, and Coastal Community Preschool.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Southern California with an emphasis in accounting.

To Be Determined

Please check back soon for a full biography.

Vanessa Platt

Vanessa has over eight years of experience as a public accountant and specializes in individual and corporate taxes. She strives to achieve client satisfaction by assisting local businesses with their tax and financial needs. She spent the first few years of her accounting career serving various local non-profit organizations, governmental special districts, and low income housing projects with their auditing and financial statement requirement.

She served on the board of the Santa Cruz Derby Girls. She is fluent in English and French.

Vanessa is licensed as a CPA in California and is a member of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from California State University Monterey Bay with an emphasis in accounting.

Jill Illidge

Jill’s accounting career began in 2010 working with closely-held businesses and high net worth individuals for a large CPA firm in San Jose. Later, Jill joined the tax department of a multinational, publicly-traded corporation based in Watsonville where she deepened her knowledge of corporate tax compliance and provided support for external audits. Jill has now refocused her career in public accounting and enjoys working with local businesses and community members to navigate the regulations and requirements of the tax world. Jill believes the value of a CPA is more than just preparing tax returns, it is helping people.

Prior to settling in Santa Cruz, Jill traveled for ten years throughout North and South America as a bicycle tour leader. She now enjoys living between the redwood forests and the ocean waves with her husband, two small children, and her favorite trail buddy, her dog. When she’s not in the office you can probably find her out on a trail or on the beach with her family.

Jill is a California licensed CPA and member of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. She graduated from UC Santa Cruz with a dual major in Politics and Latin American Studies and earned a Master of Science in Accountancy degree from San Jose State University.

Elaina Shanks

Elaina is a Santa Cruz native with over 25 years of practical bookkeeping experience. Elaina is the firm’s office manager providing our clients with efficient and thorough bookkeeping, payroll and sales tax services. In addition to her administrative duties, she is an invaluable resource for our clients. Elaina studied accounting at Cabrillo College.

Amanda Donahue

Amanda has 10 years of experience working in corporate accounting for start-ups, public and privately held companies, and non-profits. Her years of hands-on experience have provided her with the tools to advance her accounting skills. She is well-versed in receivables, payables, and general ledger activities, and equally proficient in communication, problem solving, and critical observation. Amanda graduated from Cabrillo College with an Associate’s Degree in accounting and then transferred to San Jose State University where she earned a BS in Business with an emphasis in accounting. While attending SJSU, she excelled in her tax courses, which established her desire to pursue a tax based career. She is also a Notary Public and performs notary services for her community.

Amanda is a CPA candidate and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). She spent many years as a recreational stage manager serving her local community theaters, and enjoys the hard work and devotion it takes to help bring a script to life on stage. More recently, she has become dedicated to her studies, but also enjoys gaming and cooking extravagant meals in her free time.

Lisa Norris

Lisa started her career at Ernst & Young, (EY) with an emphasis in corporate taxation. Since joining CHJ she has expanded her practice to include individual, trust, and partnership taxation. In addition to her tax practice, she handles a variety of CHJ accounting and bookkeeping engagements. Lisa graduated from UC Santa Cruz with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management Economics and is a member of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. She has traveled extensively in Central America, the Caribbean and various other places in the world. In her free time, she loves to hike in the Santa Cruz Mountains and practice yoga.