We love solving problems and getting our clients’ bookwork in order. Our favorite thing to hear from clients is “Well, that was painless.”
We are naturals at number crunching and make it our business to stay current on the tax code and how to help our clients get the most out of their money.
Heather Chambers
I have been in the accounting business since 1972, after graduating from UC Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature. Obviously I didn’t know that accounting was in my future. But it turns out there was a family business, and they actually needed me. So I undertook the job of figuring out the first real computer the company had. Under the tutelage of my uncles, Vern Halter, Public Accountant and Bob Halter (who became an Enrolled Agent), I learned accounting basics, and in 1975 I put what I knew to work with a “Burroughs 3500” computer, a desk-sized monster with 8K of program memory that used cassette tapes for client information storage and had a ball-type typing system. We thought it was so fast! A couple years later we added another whole 8K of memory, and the typing system went to dot-matrix, which was even faster! It was in 1983 that we installed the first personal computer in the office. That was a revolution. Or a revelation. A separate dot-matrix printer was needed, with continuous-feed paper with pinfeed holes. The typewriter was becoming a dinosaur, but we still have a typewriter even now, not that it is used much. In 1993 I was granted my CPA license, but continued to work under the Halter & Associates mantle, since there didn’t seem to be any need to change. After Bob Halter died in 2011, it became clear that our company needed to update itself and become a Professional Accountancy Corporation, and as such, it is required to be in the name of the licensee, which is me. When I’m not working with numbers, I’m often making greeting cards with silly rhymes, or doing cross-stitch or crosswords, or singing. I also play hand bells and sing in my church choir. I have two grown children as well as a grown husband who is retired and keeps the house from falling apart.
Melody O’Keefe
I came into the family accounting business after making some stops in retail sales, then banking, then mortgage banking before finally joining the family business of accounting in 1999. I handle the office management as well some of the bookkeeping, payroll and all notary services. I also prepare individual tax returns. I visit some clients and do bookkeeping duties at their office and others bring their work to us at the office and we handle it here. We try to accommodate the client’s needs as best we can. Since I am out of the office at times, if you need notary services it is best to call first to arrange a time, or just to make sure I am here. Outside of numbers, I enjoy singing in the church choir. I have three grown children and live in Long Beach with my husband.
Tracy Halter-Balin
I have been helping out around the office since 2010. My roots go way back to when Halter & Associates was located at the Ocean Center Building on Pine Avenue and Ocean Blvd in downtown Long Beach. Back then (early 1970s), my main job was running around the office, checking the water level in the envelope sealer and going outside on the roof to see what was happening at the Pike. Good thing my dad was one of the bosses and very patient! I still check the water level in the very same envelope sealer as well as helping out with other more important tasks. I received my degree in music from CSULB and have worked primarily in the Early Childhood Education field for the past 25 years. I am on staff at First Congregational Church of Long Beach as the Assistant Director of Music and Director of Youth Music. I also work with my husband Matt at his newly opened Matt’s Imports, an auto repair shop. I enjoy the small company, family-owned business feel. It’s nice when we can say that we’ve served the same clients for 20, 30 and 40 years!
Mike Powers
I joined the team in January 2013 to help with tax preparation and bookkeeping. In my younger days, I held varying jobs in many different fields, until I landed at Babcock & Cooke, an independent gift and card store in Long Beach, where I worked for 28 years. There I learned all aspects of operating a retail business, including bookkeeping and web design. After the store closed due to the owner’s diagnosis of ALS, I became a CTEC Registered Tax Preparer, and Heather took me in. I really thrive on being part of an independent family business, so being here is a perfect match for me. I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish and Linguistics from UCLA, so I love words as well as numbers! Unlike everyone else here, I am a terrible singer, but I do love to listen to music and to dance. Most of all, I am interested in anything to do with Mexico, especially its art, music, culture, history, archeology, and of course food. I live in Long Beach with my husband Jay Woodruff. We have been together since 2000, and married since 2008.
