Get to Know Tom
Tom is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Financial PlannerTM professional, and the Founder & Chairman of Valley National Group. He holds a BA from Lafayette College in Mathematics and Economics and holds an MBA degree from Lehigh University. Tom received the Alexander E. Loeb Gold Medal award for attaining the highest score on the CPA exam in Pennsylvania in 1977. He is a member of the Financial Planning Association and is past President and chairman of the NE Pennsylvania Society of Certified Financial Planners. Tom has more than 35 years of financial experience including serving as Bank Examiner for the US Treasury Department, Senior Accountant at KPMG, Corporate Controller of Johnson March Corporation, VP Finance of Hospital Central Services, and as founder and President of Valley National Group (1985).
When Tom started Valley National Financial Advisors in 1985 his mission was to build a one-stop business to handle as many of his clients problems and give them advice in as many areas as possible. Today, with the processes and people in place for the very long term, Tom’s time has shifted away from administrating and more on maintaining close contact with his clients. “I really, really like what I’m doing and I don’t have any plans to retire,” he says.
Tom is a self-proclaimed “City of Bethlehem Fan” and he believes strongly in keeping his company’s roots firmly planted here in the Lehigh Valley. “Bethlehem is destined to become one of the best cities to live in the U.S.” Tom first came to the area from Western Pennsylvania to play football for Lafayette College. After graduating, Tom went on to earn an MBA from Lehigh University and shortly after received the highest score in the state of Pennsylvania on his CPA exam.
The ultimate goal, says Tom, is to make clients’ lives as convenient as possible. “Each client is unique so I can’t focus exclusively on any area,” he says when asked about Valley National Financial Advisors suite of services. “We have to be able to address all those questions – everything from questions about inflation to how to purchase a car to inheritance questions. Clients can depend on their advisor not a referral to someone else.”