Barron began his accounting career in the Atlanta offices of Bennett Thrasher PC and Arthur Andersen LLP prior to joining Barnes, Broyles & Associates LLP in 1999. In 2013, he was joined by partners H. Carey Barnes and Scott A. Merritt in forming the firm of Barnes Merritt & Barnes LLC.
Barron has extensive experience in corporate, fiduciary, flow through entities, and individual income tax preparation and planning. He has been involved in both the audit and tax planning work for manufacturing and real estate companies, and has clients in many different industries including real estate, architecture, interior design, equipment sales and leasing, printing, lumber manufacturing, advertising, film production and wholesale supply. Barron is also a certified QuickBooks Pro Advisor.
In his free time, Barron enjoys spending time with his wife Katy and their three children. He coaches his daughter’s soccer team and is actively involved in the Cub Scouts. Barron and his family attend Buckhead Church.
Education
University of Alabama, BBA – Accounting
AIU, Masters of Information Technology
Professional Designation
CPA, licensed in Georgia
Professional & Community Activities
Member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
Member of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants
Brad joined BMB in 2021, with experience as a tax associate. He specializes in preparing individual and business tax returns. In his free time, Brad spends time with family and enjoys sports and live music.
Education
Albany State University, Bachelor of Science in Accounting
Carey worked in the Atlanta office of Cherry, Bekaert & Holland from 1970 to 1980 as partner and managing partner prior to forming Barnes Broyles & Associates LLP. In 2013 he was joined by partners Scott A. Merritt and S. Barron Barnes in forming the firm of Barnes Merritt & Barnes LLC.
Carey has extensive experience in mergers, acquisitions, business consulting and financing as well as corporate, partnership and individual income tax planning. He has been involved in both the audit and tax planning work for manufacturing and real estate companies, and has clients in many different industries including real estate development, architecture, interior design, equipment sales and leasing, printing, lumber manufacturing, advertising, cable television, wholesale supply and construction contracting.
In his free time, Carey enjoys running, water skiing, snow skiing, golfing and traveling with his wife Sheila. They have three adult children. He enjoys spending time with them along with his nine grandchildren. He attends and is involved at Browns Bridge Community Church.
Education
University of Alabama, BBA – Accounting
University of Alabama, Masters of Accountancy
Professional Designation
CPA, licensed in Georgia
Professional & Community Activities
Member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
Member of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants
James joined Barnes Merritt & Barnes in 2018 from PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP. His expertise includes tax return preparation, planning strategies and estimations, and IRS dispute representation.
James relocated to Atlanta to attend Kennesaw State University and begin a second career in accountancy following tours in Iraq, Afghanistan and South Korea as a U.S. Army aircraft electrician and mechanic, as well as civilian contracts working in Afghanistan and Germany.
In his free time, James enjoys building custom exotic and classic cars and spending time with his wife and kids.
Education
Kennesaw State University, Masters of Accountancy
Professional Designation
CPA, licensed in Georgia
Judi joined the BMB team in early 2021. After assisting at a CPA firm, she found the industry engaging and wanted to continue her experience in the field. At BMB, Judi specialized in processing tax returns, processing mail, and providing attentive assistance to clients.
In her free time, Judi enjoys hiking, crafting, and teaching English on-line to students in China. She is always happy to spend quality time with her husband, as well as their adult children when they are in town.
Education
William Paterson University, Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration
Kennesaw State University, Professional Bookkeeping Certificate
Kelly brings a depth of experience to Barnes Merritt & Barnes as Director of Operations. She is primarily responsible for staffing, billing, and managing administrative duties for the firm.
In her free time, Kelly enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, snow skiing, and teaching people how to waterski.
Education
Florida Southern College, BS – Business
Kristen joined Barnes Merritt & Barnes as an accounting assistant in 2020. Kristen is studying Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Georgia.
In her free time, Kristen enjoys cooking, traveling, live music, and spending time with her dog, family, and friends. Kristen attends Local Church Dawson.
Lisa originally worked with Barnes Merritt & Barnes from 2011-2014 and happily rejoined the team as a senior staff accountant in 2018. Lisa has more than 20 years of experience in public and private accounting, specializing in bookkeeping, payroll, taxes, and Quickbooks consulting.
In her free time, Lisa enjoys gardening, reading, hiking, and traveling with her husband and two daughters. Lisa attends Local Church Dawson with her family.
Education
University of North Georgia, BBA – Accounting
Bio coming soon!
Education
Joanna has been with Barnes Merritt and Barnes since 2009. In her time with BMB, she manages the Cumming office, and provides accounting services for multiple bookkeeping clients. As a certified QuickBooks Proadvisor she has experience with current and after-the-fact bookkeeping, payroll, and QuickBooks consulting.
In her free time, Joanna enjoys reading, traveling, and being active in her church and local community.
Education
BS – Business and Education
Ladonna joined BMB in 2022 with a unique background in QuickBooks. Since 1981, she and her husband have owned 3 businesses, and Ladonna has had experience with keeping the books for themselves along with other industries as well. She brings a wealth of knowledge to Barnes Merritt and Barnes that we know will be beneficial to our clients.
Ladonna enjoys spending time with her 2 grandsons, and playing golf.
Education:
Dekalb Community College
Nadeen joined Barnes Merritt and Barnes in September 2007. As a tax manager, she oversees the tax and audit teams as well as client services at BMB and works with maintenance and advisory clients to ensure tax efficiency. Nadeen brings more than 20 years experience in public and private accounting to the firm.
In her free time, Nadeen enjoys traveling with her husband and daughters, and watching her daughters learn and excel at soccer (her oldest), and horseback riding (her youngest).
Education
Temple University, BBA – Accounting
Professional Designations
CPA, licensed in Pennsylvania and Georgia
Professional & Community Activities
Member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
Member of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants
Rachel has held many roles since she began with Barnes Merritt & Barnes in 2013. Her current responsibilities include client development, client advisory services, bookkeeping and tax support. She brings over 35 years of experience, including five years of SEC accounting with Warner Bros. and three years of public accounting with Arthur Andersen in the Los Angeles area.
In her free time, Rachel enjoys spending time with her family and friends, traveling, and exploring creative outlets such as interior design.
Education
Loyola Marymount University, Bachelor of Science – Accounting
As a business owner, you want to partner with someone who understands what life is like as an entrepreneur. With over 25 years of running his own business & working in the tax industry, Scott has worked with many entrepreneurs. This experience allows him to use knowledge and insight of small business & business tax planning to create and deliver creative business tax planning solutions.
Professional Designation
CPA, licensed in Georgia
Professional & Community Activities
Member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
Member of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants
Stephanie joined us in January of 2021 with a previous background in administrative work. Her experience as an office administrator in a legal office and as an office manager working for a local swim training company has been a great addition to our Barnes Merritt and Barnes Cumming office. She works closely with our tax preparers and our tax clients in keeping everyone up to date with requests and deadlines.
Stephanie has been married for 24 years and has two children, with one in college and one in high school. In her free time, she enjoys watching her children play sports, camping and spending time with friends.
