About Us
MEET THE TEAM
Certified Public Accountant
Hope St. Clair
Hope St. Clair, CPA is a Certified Public Accountant specializing in tax and accounting for small businesses and their owners since 2006. Hope is an expert in tax planning strategies using tax credits, deductions, and loopholes to maximize benefits to her clients. For nearly 25 years, Hope has called Georgia her home after transferring from Southern California to work with The Coca-Cola Company. Besides being a mother of two and new grandmother, she leads the Pickens CPA team with grace and enthusiasm. She finds joy snuggling her twin grandsons, ensuring the financial success of Starbucks, brushing up on her baking skills and attending hometown festivities with her husband, Roger.
IRS Enrolled Agent, Tax Manager
KIM DEARBORN
Kim Dearborn is an Enrolled Agent with over 30 years of practical experience to assist clients and safely navigate the waters of compliance and tax planning. Her passion is helping individuals, non-profits, and businesses create and implement tax plans that maximize their long-term economic wellbeing. With a lifelong love of numbers and organization, this Foxboro, MA native earned her Bachelor of Science in Accounting at Bentley. Kim also volunteers her time with local community groups and events. She holds a license for Real Estate Sales. She serves as the Trustee of her condo association and in her free time, enjoys exercise, baking, walking and Sudoku. Kim is also a Reiki Master who dabbles in DJing and cake decorating.
CPA, Tax Manager
Blake Thompson
Blake Thompson is a lifelong Georgia resident, having lived in various parts of the state. He grew up in South Georgia and later moved to Athens for his education. Currently, he resides in Smyrna, GA, where you can often find him at the Battery enjoying a Braves game after work.
Blake is a Certified Public Accountant with over six years of experience in public accounting. He earned both his Bachelor's in Business Administration in Accounting and his Master of Accountancy from The University of Georgia. His passion for accounting began in childhood while working for his father, spending weekends counting inventory and reconciling financials. This early experience sparked his lifelong dedication to supporting small businesses and their owners.
Outside of his professional life, Blake enjoys spending quality time with his wife, whom he met in high school, and their golden retriever, Magnolia. He also loves visiting family, fishing and hunting in North Georgia and the Great Smoky Mountains and cheering on the Georgia Bulldogs (Go Dawgs!) and the Braves.
Business Development Manager
ERIN PREISER
Erin has been a Georgia transplant for 16 years but is originally from the Midwest. She has a BA in Psychology and an MBA. She worked as a project manager before joining the local school district, and as a small business bookkeeper before joining Pickens CPA. She and her husband of 23 years are the proud parents of five children ranging from elementary school to adult. Erin's been known to bring home stray animals, she's fluent in movie quotes, loves to get lost in a good book, watch the Braves, take beach vacations and is addicted to tattoos.
Staff Accountant
JENNNIFER TILLEY
Jennifer has been a resident of Cherokee County for over 40 years. Prior to joining Pickens CPA, she worked in the local school district, pouring into our young residents of Cherokee County. With 24 years of experience as a small business owner alongside her husband, transitioning to Pickens CPA as a bookkeeper was an ideal fit. Jennifer and her husband of 23 years are proud parents to three wonderful children and two beloved fur babies. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family, baking up treats in the kitchen, and cheering on her favorite team, the Tennessee Volunteers!
Staff Accountant
Ashley Mobley
Hailing from a cozy small town in Middle Georgia, Ashley has proudly called Cherokee County home for the past 8 years. With an impressive 15 years of accounting experience, her passion for helping small business owners shines in everything she does.
She’s been happily married to her high school sweetheart for 14 years, and together they’ve built a life filled with love, laughter, and adventure alongside their two amazing kids and one sweet, snuggly pup.
When Ashley’s not crunching numbers, she’s the ultimate cheerleader—whether she’s rooting for her son’s baseball team, applauding her daughter’s drama club performances, or shouting “Go Dawgs!” and “Let’s go, Braves!” from the sidelines. She’s always bringing the fun wherever she goes!
Office Manager and Client Relations
Elizabeth Garrison
Elizabeth was born and raised in New York where she earned a BS in Early Childhood Education from SUNY Oneonta. From there, she joined her parents in South Florida but decided to leave and move to Cherokee County in 2018. Before joining us at Pickens CPA, she was an elementary school teacher for 12 years. From her time in education, she brings strengths in organization and building relationships. When she’s not busy working, Elizabeth enjoys working out, spending time in the sun, relaxing with her sweet pup Penelope, and most recently learning to embroider.
Staff Accountant
Renee Foley
Renee Foley's journey started in the heart of Kentucky, but she blossomed in Roswell, Georgia. For over three decades, she has called Woodstock her home, after moving from Smyrna. Inspired by her mother's bookkeeping skills, Renee's love for numbers began early. Her professional path took off in banking and then transitioned to mortgage processing. She paused her career for ten years to focus on raising her two wonderful children, Jessica and Justin.
When Renee returned to the workforce, she found herself back in banking before taking on the role of accounting manager at a chemical manufacturing company, where she thrived for 16 years.
Life for Renee is delightfully busy with her husband, Dan, their blended family of four children, and two energetic grandsons. When she's not crunching numbers, Renee loves outdoor adventures, playing games, and her newest hobby: crafting beautiful charcuterie boards for gatherings with friends and family.
Get in Touch with Pickens CPA Services
You can count on us for professional, timely and reliable tax and accounting services. If you’re ready to get started, just fill out this form and we’ll be in touch.