Stuart Kessler, who was tax director for CohnReznick in New York City, received the Stanley H. Breitbard Lifetime Achievement in Personal Financial Planning Award in June, shortly before his death at age 90 in August. This was only the third lifetime achievement award in personal financial planning given by the AICPA.
Kessler played a key role in launching the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning (PFP) Division more than 30 years ago and led the way in having personal financial planning included as one of the five core services for future CPA practitioners in the CPA Vision initiative in the late 1990s.
Kessler served as chairman of the AICPA board of directors and the AICPA's PFP Executive Committee, as president of the AICPA Foundation board of trustees, and on the AICPA's governing Council, among other notable roles. He was also a past president of the New York State Society of CPAs and of its Foundation of Accounting Education.
