Brian Payne is one of our newest FLEX members. He is originally from Hadley, PA, and graduated from Edinboro University with bachelor’s degrees in Forensic Accounting and Financial Planning.
Brian now works as a CPA Tax Supervisor at McGill, Power, Bell & Associates in Franklin. He has acquired his CPA and CFE designations and takes great pride and enjoyment from his work and his career achievements. Future goals of his are to become a partner at McGill, Power, Bell, as well as to learn a foreign language (probably Russian).
One of the things he loves about working in Venango County is the small town environment. The way people treat each other with a welcoming kindness is one of the biggest reasons he enjoys living here. Brian enjoys the fun Chamber events where he can go to learn and network with other professionals.
Brian is also an avid Pirates fan, who will forever hope they win a World Series. His hobbies are yet another reason he enjoys Venango County. When he is not working, he can be found fishing and spending time with his girlfriend, Stephanie.
Some other parts of the Venango culture that Brian appreciates are tasting beers at Trails to Ales, seeing local live bands at Red Bandana Winery, and spending time with family.
Jessica Wilson has lived in Oil City since she was two years old. She was home schooled for most of her elementary and high school years and graduated high school in 2017. During high school, she played varsity volleyball at Oil City High School and worked at the Oil City YMCA as a lifeguard.
Jessica pursues a communication degree with a marketing minor at Geneva College. She is a long distance runner and gets to enjoy this hobby at school by participating in the cross country and track teams.
Some of her achievements include being on the dean’s list every semester at Geneva College and helping to found a communication production club. Through this club, she has also filmed campus wide promotional videos. Last year, she spent time working at The Derrick and The News-Herald as an advertising intern, where she helped to sell and design ads for the paper and various tabloids. She also works during the semester in the Geneva College PR and Marketing Services department.
When she is not running around Oil City or on the bike trail, Jessica enjoys reading, cooking, hiking at Oil Creek State Park, movies, and spending time with family and friends. This summer she can be found working at the Venango Chamber of Commerce.
One of her future goals is to “be just like my mom.” She also hopes to work in PR and Marketing helping companies further their mission statements and do what they do best. Jessica also hopes to travel more within the country and abroad, continue running, and have many adorable cats.
This article was published in the Venango Area Chamber of Commerce’s July 2019 VenangoWorks! Newsletter.