Antonio Brown, CPA, brings a combination of financial expertise, strategic leadership and calm decision-making to organizations navigating complex challenges. Today, as chief financial officer of the Detroit Public Library, he helps guide critical financial decisions that sustain one of the city’s most important public institutions.

Brown’s impact is rooted in experience forged under pressure. Early in his career, an unexpected opportunity placed him in a senior leadership role as Deputy Finance Director for the city of Flint, Michigan—at a time when the city faced severe financial strain, with just two and a half months of cash on hand. He quickly showed the ability to operate in high-stakes environments, supporting financial stabilization efforts while working under multiple emergency managers.

In Flint, Brown learned to do more than manage numbers—he learned to make them actionable. By translating complex financial realities into clear, accessible narratives, he enabled leaders to make informed decisions with confidence. This ability to communicate financial insight in a way that builds alignment and trust is a defining strength of CPAs.

From financial recovery to sustainable growth

At the Detroit Public Library, Brown applies that same discipline at scale. He plays a central role in long-term capital planning and resource allocation, helping the organization navigate ongoing challenges such as aging infrastructure and significant deferred maintenance needs. His work includes balancing a $53 million fund balance against much larger long-term obligations—ensuring resources are deployed effectively while maintaining financial stability.

By breaking down challenges into manageable steps, Brown enables boards, executives and stakeholders to move forward with focus and confidence. In cities like Flint and Detroit, Brown’s work directly supports access to essential public resources, reinforcing the stability and sustainability of institutions that communities depend on.

He operates as a translator, strategist and trusted advisor—helping organizations make better decisions, manage risk and plan for the future.

That same commitment carries into his private tax and advisory practice, where he serves everyone from individuals to small businesses, helping them navigate decisions that can shape their financial futures.

Brown also serves as a member of the Michigan State Board of Accountancy, which licenses and regulates Certified Public Accountants and public accounting firms.

From municipal recovery to institutional stewardship, Antonio Brown’s career demonstrates how CPAs create value where it matters most: bringing clarity, stability and strategic direction in moments of complexity.

Financial education leads to financial freedom. That’s the heart of Sherron Permashwar’s tax and wealth management practice and what guides her community involvement.

Permashwar is a licensed Certified Public Accountant and a Personal Financial Specialist (PFS), having earned and maintained the credential granted exclusively to CPAs with tax expertise and comprehensive knowledge of financial planning.

With a start in public accounting that encompassed tax, tax planning and tax research, Permashwar has broadened her practice to include holistic financial planning, wealth strategy, and financial education. Personal Financial Specialists must attain 3,000 hours of personal financial planning-related experience in areas such as risk management, estate planning, investments and retirement planning, and pass a series of exams beyond the CPA Exam.

Permashwar brings that experience together to help individuals not just manage money—but understand it, use it, and create lasting wealth with it. She operates a tax and accounting services firm in Florida and has numerous ventures and passion projects.
Having experienced firsthand the transformative power of financial education, Permashwar is passionate about helping others create opportunities for themselves and future generations.

For Permashwar, financial planning is not something done for clients; it’s something done with them. “I believe that wealth strategies should be done in an educational way,” she explains. “Clients should be involved. Financial freedom cannot happen without learning.”

That belief shapes everything she does. Whether she’s advising a client through her business, The Modern Savvy CPA, teaching a workshop, or hosting her podcast, Get Wealthy With Me, Permashwar focuses on making financial concepts approachable, relevant and actionable. She knows that for many people, financial information can feel overwhelming—or even out of reach.

“There’s so much information out there, but it’s noisy,” she says. “People need clarity from someone they trust.”

That clarity is especially important in today’s world, where individuals are responsible for more of their financial decisions than ever before. Permashwar’s approach centers on helping clients connect the dots—bringing together tax, investments, debt, and long-term goals into one cohesive strategy. She also works with entrepreneurs and business owners to align personal and business financial decisions with long-term wealth-building goals.

Much of her work focuses on helping women, Millennials and Gen Z build confidence with money, create wealth, and make informed financial decisions. She founded a nonprofit to offer financial literacy education through other nonprofits.

She emphasizes that building wealth doesn’t require a perfect starting point.

“Wealth creation can start with a dollar,” she says.

Through her work, Permashwar helps clients move from uncertainty to confidence, equipping them with the knowledge and tools to make informed decisions at every stage of life.

For those seeking guidance, her message is simple: financial success isn’t about quick wins. It’s about understanding your options, making intentional choices, and having a trusted advisor to help you navigate the journey toward financial freedom and lasting wealth.