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We are your trusted partner in success. Our firm is large enough to offer a full range of professional services at a fair price, but small enough to give you the individual attention that you deserve.
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Staff Profiles
James A (Jim) Wheeler, EA (he/him/his) | Owner of Wheeler’s Tax Service, LLC
The founder and owner of Wheeler’s Tax Service, Jim has an Associates Degree in Accounting and in Real Estate. In the process of obtaining the Accounting degree he took classes in investments, insurance, and other fields appropriate to tax work that are not usually considered accounting electives. He started business on January 2, 1978 and has been an Enrolled Agent since March of 1979. In a typical year Jim will attend 48-80 hours of continuing education. Also a member of NAEA and WSEA, Jim’s specialties are Real Estate activities and small business. He can prepare taxes for any state, and US taxes for residents of other countries.
Now in semi-retirement (though that doesn’t keep him out of the office much during season!), Jim has more time for traveling, spending time playing board games with his kids and grandkids, and keeping up with Jeopardy!®.
Enrolled Agent: Enrolled to practice before the Internal Revenue Service. One of three designations able to provide 3rd party unlimited representation before the IRS. The other two are certified public accountants (CPAs) and attorneys, providing that they have not been barred from representation by the IRS
NAEA: National Association of Enrolled Agents
WSEA: Wisconsin Society of Enrolled Agents (the Wisconsin chapter of NAEA)
Crystal Wheeler, EA (she/her/hers) | Tax Manager
Crystal has been preparing income taxes since 2000, and has experience working with individual, partnership, corporate, and estate tax returns. She specializes in direct marketing businesses and rental properties.
In 2016, Crystal became an Enrolled Agent. Enrolled agents (EAs) are America’s tax experts(*). Since becoming an enrolled agent, Crystal has become active in the Wisconsin Society of Enrolled Agents (WSEA) and the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA), the only national association dedicated to the promotion of the enrolled agent credential. Crystal served in various roles on the board of WSEA from 2017-2024, and is currently serving as Chair of the Membership Committee for NAEA. Crystal has completed advanced training in representing taxpayers through NAEA’s National Tax Practice Institute, becoming an NTPI Fellow in December 2021.
When not in the office, Crystal enjoys knitting with friends, reading books, playing board games, and spending time with her family. She, her husband, and three children all enjoy traveling on cruises and participating in the Bristol Renaissance Faire. Her husband and the younger two kids also enjoy swordfighting through Historical European Martial Arts (HEMA), and Crystal enjoys attending tournaments and supporting them. Crystal is also a lifetime member of Girl Scouts, a proud Gold Award recipient, and is still active in the local council with her youngest child.
(*) EAs are the only federally-licensed tax practitioners who specialize in taxation and also have unlimited rights to represent taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service. An enrolled agent is a person who has earned the privilege of representing taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by either passing a stringent and comprehensive examination covering individual and business tax returns and representation of clients before the IRS or through experience as a former IRS employee. Individuals who obtain this elite status must adhere to ethical standards and enrolled agents, like attorneys and certified public accountants (CPAs), have unlimited practice rights. This means they are unrestricted as to which taxpayers they can represent, what types of tax matters they can handle, and which IRS offices they can represent clients before. But unlike attorneys and CPAs, who may or may not choose to specialize in taxes, all enrolled agents specialize in taxation. CPAs and attorneys are licensed by the states, but enrolled agents are federally licensed. That means they are not limited to practicing in states from which they have received a license; they can practice anywhere in the United States. In addition to the stringent testing and application process, the IRS requires enrolled agents to complete 72 hours of continuing education every three years to maintain their licenses.
Alison Wheeler (she/her/hers) | Office Manager
Alison initially started working for Wheeler’s Tax Service while in high school. After a couple years, she left to pursue other paths, particularly convenience store management. In 2017, life brought her back to the family business. Alison graduated from Fox Valley Technical College in May 2018 with an Associate’s Degree in Accounting, as well as in Banking and Finance. For her internship, she returned to Wheeler’s Tax Service and took over our bookkeeping accounts. She also started helping out preparing returns. Currently, Alison is our point person for bookkeeping, and is competent in preparing a wide range of tax returns.
Jeremy Wheeler (he/him/his)
Jeremy started working for Wheeler’s Tax Service in 2018. Jeremy has an Associate’s degree in Accounting and a Bachelor’s degree in Finance. He is also studying to take the Special Enrollment Exam (SEE) to become an Enrolled Agent.
When he’s not at the office, Jeremy is very involved with the Appleton MacDowell Male Chorus, which he has been a member of since 2004. He would love to see you at a concert!
Serena Wheeler, EA (she/her/hers)
Serena joined the Wheeler’s Tax Service team full time in 2019. In 2024 she passed the Special Enrollment Exam to become an Enrolled Agent. She has experience with individual, partnership, corporate, and estate returns. She is the firm specialist in non-profit returns. She is also the payroll manager, setting up clients to process their payroll and ensuring the payroll and quarterly reports are timely filed.
When not in the office, Serena can often be found playing board games with family and friends, or taking her beagle, Amil, to the dog park. Amil can often be found in the office, but he also stays home some days with the rest of the family. If you see him, feel free to stop by and ask for a treat for him.
Deb Tendick (she/her/hers)
Deb joined us in 2020 as a part-time receptionist and is now our administrative guiding light. As our Support Staff Manager, Deb oversees all of our administrative associates. She is a master at scheduling our receptionists and keeping the wheels on the road.