Ken Kaye Award Recipients

Ken Kaye Award Recipients

This award is granted to an active member of The Financial Planning Forum in recognition of his/her outstanding service to the community.   This service may be in the form of research, activity, leadership, or public service.  Each year a committee grants this award to a member who most exemplifies our past president and sustaining member, Ken Kaye’s, achievements and dedication.

2010 Award Recipient – Leonard Williams

Leonard is the owner of a 10-person CPA firm in Sunnyvale which has an emphasis on tax planning and return preparation for individuals, trusts, and estates. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the University of Michigan and a Master’s degree in Taxation from California State University at Hayward (now CSU-East Bay).

In 2006, the CalCPA Committee on Taxation named Leonard the recipient of the Saul Braverman Award, presented annually to a CalCPA member who has made exceptional contributions to the profession in the tax field. Leonard has presented at and helped plan for the Education Foundation’s annual Tax Update and Planning Conference since 1998, and has made presentations to a number of industry groups, such as the San Jose Real Estate Board, the Tri-County Apartment Association, and the California Association of Realtors.

He has been president of CalCPA’s Peninsula Silicon Valley Chapter (1993-93), chair of the chapter’s Tax Committee, chair of the AICPA Tax Determination Subcommittee, and has been a member of CalCPA’s Committee on Taxation for more than 20 years.

Leonard served as an adjunct faculty member for California State University, Hayward and has lectured at community colleges on tax matters. For many years, he has written the “California Tax” column for California CPA, the CPA society’s monthly magazine, and has published articles in numerous other professional and industry publications, and he was recently interviewed by the Wall Street Journal … on March 27 and September 11 of this year.

Leonard’s community involvement includes past service as an officer of B’nai B’rith and membership on the Finance Committee for Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills. He also belongs to a fire department auxiliary group and drives the rehab unit (canteen wagon) to fires of extended duration to support the fire departments in Santa Clara County. He is also an avid collector of antique fire engines.

In recognition of such service for more than 35 years, Leonard received the 2005 CalCPA Public Service Award and was honored at the September 28, 2010 meeting by the Financial Planning Forum with the Ken Kaye Award.

Past Recipients

2009 – Todd Flesner,  Stern Mortgage

Kenneth Richard Kaye
1943 – 2007

Ken Kaye was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  He received his Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and his law degree from Stanford University.  He was on active duty in the United States Army from 1970-1972.

Ken practiced law for 35 years in trust and estate planning, charitable gift planning, probate, and real estate transactions, with special attention to tax issues in these areas.

Community service was a very important part of Ken’s life. He served as a board member and past-president of the Palo Alto Financial Planning Forum, was a past president of the Los Alto Kiwanis Club, the Los Altos Chamber of Commerce, the Community Services Agency, Miramonte Mental Health Services (Alliance of Community Care), and the Menlo Park Kiwanis Club.

He received many community service and leadership awards.  He helped create the Los Altos Mediation Program and volunteered with the Community Health Awareness Council, many city committees and programs, and numerous other nonprofit organizations. Planned giving was a special passion of his; he encouraged individuals to include charitable contributions in their estate planning and helped non-profits set up planned giving programs.

Known as an honest, passionate, and ethical man, Ken was well loved by his family and many friends and business associates.

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