BACKGROUND

Aaron Galster, CPA came full circle when he joined Roth&Co as a partner in the Illinois office in 2021. His career path started at Roth&Co before advancing to the Big Four, where he led engagements on some of the largest public companies. He has over nine years of public accounting experience serving REITs and private equity funds invested across several sectors including energy, healthcare and residential and commercial real estate.

EXPERIENCE

Aaron applies his technical skills to improve the process for large-scale real estate clients that require a high volume of K-1s and tax return filings. His expertise includes tax compliance at a fund and property level, transaction analysis and taxpayer dispute resolution. Aaron works closely with clients to guide them through the latest Tax Reform, providing clear analysis on the tax implication on their investment returns.
Aaron’s motto is to “know your why”. For him, this translates as building a winning culture where people perform their best and have fun doing it.

EDUCATION AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Aaron received a B.S. in accounting from Touro College. He is a certified public accountant in the states of Illinois and New York, and is a member of the AICPA.

OUTSIDE OF ROTH&CO

Aaron is a long-time (and the fastest) member of the Roth&Co Bike4Chai cycling team and is involved with several local charities.

BACKGROUND

Ed brings nearly 50 years of auditing and accounting experience to Roth&Co. He launched his career at Ernst and Whinney and Arthur Andersen, and in 1974, he founded E. C. Ortiz and Co., LLP.  After E.C. Ortiz saw 40 years of continuous growth, Ed orchestrated the merger of E. C. Ortiz and Roth&Co, ushering in a new chapter of collaboration and development.

EDUCATION

Ed holds an accounting degree from Far Eastern University, and attended Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth University.

ACHIEVEMENTS

Ed is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Illinois and a Chartered Global Management Accountant. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Illinois CPA Society, Indiana CPA Society, Government Finance Officers Association, Institute of Internal Auditors and Institute of Management Accounting.

Ed is a former member of the Board of Directors of Illinois CPA Society and a member of the Founders Council of the CPA Endowment Fund of Illinois. In 2010, he was the recipient of the Illinois CPA Society Lifetime Achievement Award. He is currently a member of Illinois CPA Society’s Political Action Committee and served as a member of the Nominating Committee from 2013 through 2016.

BACKGROUND

Marites brings over 20 years of accounting and audit experience serving various industries. Marites leads the Illinois office’s expanded information systems and reviews engagements focusing on compliance of governmental entities.

EXPERIENCE

Marites has experience in providing financial audit, Single Audit, agreed-upon procedures and compliance attestation examination for entities in the higher education, government, gaming, healthcare and small businesses industries.

Marites worked at Arthur Andersen (Philippines) and Price Waterhouse Coopers (Singapore) before joining E.C. Ortiz, now known as Roth&Co

EDUCATION

Marites received her Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from the University of Negros Occidental – Recoletos. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Illinois CPA Society, the Government Finance Officers Association, the Institute of Internal Auditors and ISACA.  Marites is a Certified Public Accountant in Illinois and in California, a Certified Internal Auditor and a Certified Information Systems Auditor.

BEYOND ROTH&CO

Marites enjoys travelling and spending time with family and friends.

BACKGROUND

Leilani has been with E.C. Ortiz – now Roth&Co, for over 20 years. She specializes in providing financial audit, Single Audit and state compliance examination services to higher educational institutions, not-for-profit organizations and governmental entities, while overseeing the Illinois office’s quality control monitoring.

EXPERIENCE

Leilani has more than 20 years of experience providing assurance and business advisory services to governmental entities, not-for-profit organizations and small businesses.  Prior to joining Roth&Co, she worked at SGV & Co. (Ernst & Young Philippines) and Team Energy Philippines.  

EDUCATION

Leilani graduated with Academic Distinction from the Philippine School of Business Administration, receiving her Bachelor of Science in Accountancy.  She is a Certified Public Accountant in the Philippines and in Illinois, and is a member of both the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS).  She serves as a member of the Governmental Executive Committee and the CPA Exam Award Committee of the ICPAS.  Leilani previously served as a member of the Government Conference Task Force of the ICPAS and as a member of the State of Illinois Local Government Advisory Board. 

BEYOND ROTH&CO

Leilani is an active supporter of the ICPAS’ programs and activities.  She serves on the Board of Directors of the CPA Endowment Fund of Illinois, which raises philanthropic support to fund a variety of scholarship and outreach programs which help students pursue a career in accounting.

In her spare time, Leilani enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with her family.

BACKGROUND

Epifanio has over 33 years of experience providing audit, accounting, tax and business advisory services to governmental entities, for-profit organizations, not-for-profit organizations and small businesses.  Epifanio’s valuable experience working across a range of industries and entities expands the range of services provided by Roth&Co. 

EXPERIENCE

Before joining Roth&Co, Epifanio held positions at O.B. Montessori Center, Inc., Anchor Steel Industries, Inc. and Republic-Asahi Glass Corporation. He has extensive experience in providing financial audit, state compliance examination and agreed-upon procedures of government entities. 

Epifanio led the accounting, tax matters and business advisory services of E.C Ortiz, before its merger with Roth&Co. He addressed the needs of for-profit and not-for-profit organizations and small businesses, and targeted healthcare issues including Medicare and Department of Aging cost reporting. 

EDUCATION

Epifanio received his Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Far Eastern University and a candidate for a Master of Business Administration from Ateneo de Manila University.

Epifanio is a Certified Public Accountant in the Philippines, Illinois and Indiana, and is a Chartered Global Management Accountant. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS), and concurrently serves as a member of the ICPAS Taxation – Individual Committee.

BEYOND ROTH&CO

Epifanio enjoys spending time with family, travelling and gardening. He supports the local community and is active in the Philippine Professional Association, and currently serves as a member of the board of Philippine American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Chicago.