Meet Kevin Buckley, bean counter with McGuire, Yuhas, Huffman & Buckley

Family: Married to Debi; two grown sons, Jason and Cody

Occupation: Certified public accountant, partner at McGuire, Yuhas, Huffman & Buckley.

Education: Bachelor's degree in accounting from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and certified public accountant.

My "I'd rather be ..." bumper sticker would read: "I'd rather be fishing in Manitoba." 

Hobbies/interests: Fishing, golf, traveling and motorcycle riding.

My first job: Walking beans and bailing hay for a local farmer.

Personal approaches to challenges: Try to come up with a possible solution, and don't give up until you do.

Community involvement: I have been involved with Mount Zion Youth Baseball and Basketball, United Cerebral Palsy, served as Mount Zion Chamber of Commerce president and treasurer, and served on finance and administrative councils of my church.

Everyone generally associates accountants with income taxes. What other services do accountants provide? CPA's also do business consulting, accounting, financial planning and auditing.

Who should consider having one? Anyone who wants to understand or know what's happening in their taxes, business or finances.

Who should consider using a professional tax preparer and why? A professional preparer can really help someone with a business or properties or just a lot of things going on in their lives. The problem generally is not knowing what you don't know.

What are some of the key deductions people should be on the look out for? For 2009, they would be first- and second-time homeowner credits, additional deductions for new vehicle purchases, the Make Work Pay credit or, for businesses, the domestic production activities deduction.

Is it really possible that the Making Work Pay tax credit could come back to bite me this tax season? Yes. The Making Work Pay credit is set up to offset the effect of lowered withholdings throughout the year, but depending on income levels, it could have a negative effect on refunds at tax time.

What should I be doing now to prepare for the 2010 tax season? Organize your information as the year goes on, and touch base with your tax return preparer as the year progresses if your financial position or expected business results change. Many tax issues can be altered or offset prior to the year's end. That becomes much harder after the year ends.