Zoltan Kemeny Honored for Commitment to Community
Zoltan Kemeny, owner of Zoltan Kemeny LLC, is dedicated to giving back to the Staten Island community.
Kemeny was born into a Jewish family in Hungary in the aftermath of World War II. Kemeny’s parents, both Holocaust survivors, met and started a family following the war. Seizing the opportunity to start anew, Kemeny’s parents fled Hungary at the onset of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and immigrated to Montreal, Canada. As a result, Kemeny grew up in Montreal, learning both French and English in addition to his native tongue, Hungarian.
Kemeny attended McGill University, one of Canada’s most prestigious institutions, during the Vietnam War, graduating in 1971 with a Bachelor of Arts in Jewish Studies and English Literature. Upon graduating from McGill, Kemeny spent a year in Israel refining his Hebrew before deciding to pursue his graduate degree in the United States, where he met his wife, Leslie Fishbein. Like Kemeny, Fishbein studied the humanities pursuing a graduate degree in American Studies and was teaching at various universities across the United States when they met.
When Kemeny started his Masters in English and Comparative Literature from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), he also began teaching part-time at the university while Fishbein taught across the city at Occidental College. Upon graduating, Kemeny and Fishbein both found teaching opportunities at Rutgers University, where Kemeny continued to teach Comparative Literature for the next ten years.
“The mid-1980s were pivotal for us. My wife was ahead of me in her teaching journey, and she became tenured at Rutgers. Then, in 1986, she received a Fulbright scholarship to Israel. At the time I was leading the inaugural year of the Rutgers Junior Year Abroad in Israel, so it worked out that we were able to go for the year,” reminisces Kemeny. “Our kids weren’t in school yet, so we were able to travel, and we didn’t think we would have another opportunity to live abroad. It was incredible, but returning to the United States was a propelling moment for me because I realized that my wife and I would be competing for academic positions. That’s when I decided to switch careers.”
After returning to the United States, Kemeny completed his Master of Philosophy in English and Comparative Literature, a Master’s program specific to Columbia University that Kemeny had begun before moving to Israel. Upon graduating from Columbia in 1987, Kemeny immediately pivoted and obtained his Master of Business Administration in Professional Accounting at Rutgers in 1991.
As soon as Kemeny started accounting, he dove headfirst into the field. Beginning as a visiting instructor at Rutgers’ Graduate School of Management, Kemeny became an expert in accounting by teaching, just as he had with comparative literature. While teaching, Kemeny also acted as a consultant to various local CPA firms, and he eventually became a Senior Accountant and Systems Administrator at German, Vreeland, & Associates, LLP, where he learned how to audit not-for-profits.
In 2003, Kemeny stopped teaching at Rutgers and started working full-time as an Audit Manager for Potter & LaMarca LLP, an accounting firm on Staten Island. Previously unfamiliar with Staten Island, Kemeny began working closely with many not-for-profit organizations on the Island and engaged with them one-on-one daily.
“Over the years, I’ve touched a lot of the nonprofits on Staten Island,” says Kemeny. “As an auditor, you’re there at a very high level, and you’re having serious conversations with the President of the Board and the Executive Director. I loved watching these organizations grow over time, from homeless shelters to museums to economic development corporations; it’s been so rewarding and fun to be a part of the process.”
After nearly fifteen years with Potter & LaMarca, Kemeny decided to open his own firm. “We were going through some changes at Potter & LaMarca at the time, and I wanted to test the waters to see if I could branch out on my own,” says Kemeny. “I learned a lot working at other firms, but it was time for me to be independent.”
Kemeny officially started Zoltan Kemeny, LLC in 2017, a full-service accounting firm based in Staten Island, New York and Highland Park, New Jersey. When Kemeny opened the firm he continued nonprofit audits that required specialized reporting. Kemeny continued to take on nonprofit clients until 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began to alter the accounting world.
“When you’re on a moving train, it’s hard to stop,” emphasizes Kemeny. “It was always in the back of my mind that I would transition away from auditing, I just wasn’t sure how. The pandemic provided me that opportunity, and I was then able to focus and build on my existing base of individual clients and small businesses.”
For his accomplishments, Zoltan Kemeny is being honored with a Louis R. Miller Business Leadership Award, which he will receive in the Established Businessperson category. The awards, which are presented by the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce and the Staten Island Advance, honor the memory of Louis R. Miller, a businessman and West Brighton resident who was also a community leader.
In addition to contributing to the Staten Island community through his work, Kemeny also volunteers his time to various organizations on the Island. Kemeny serves on the Board of Directors for the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce, as well as on its Finance and Audit Committees. He is also a member of the Board of Directors at Children at Play. In New Jersey, Kemeny serves on the Board of Directors for the Wilf Campus for Senior Living and is a Past President of the Highland Park Conservative Temple.
“Staten Island has given me a lot, and I really enjoy being a part of the community,” says Kemeny. “It’s become a second home for me, which is why I’m so willing to give back. I want to keep doing this for as long as I can.”
Questionnaire:
Current occupation and title: Owner of Zoltan Kemeny LLC.
Hometown (i.e. New Dorp, Tottenville or elsewhere, etc.): Montreal, Canada.
Past occupation/s and titles: Visiting Instructor at Rutgers University Graduate School of Management, Staff Accountant at David M. Feder, CPA, Senior Accountant and Systems Administrator at German, Vreeland, & Associates, and Audit Manager at Potter & LaMarca.
Community involvement: Past Treasurer, Solomon Schechter Day School of the Raritan Valley; Past President, Highland Park Conservative Temple-Congregation Anshe Emeth; Board Member, Children at Play; Board Member, Wilf Campus for Senior Living, NJ; Board Member, Staten Island Chamber of Commerce.
Some of my life goals include: Try to have a positive impact in everything I do, and have fun doing it.
The best part of my job: Working with start-up businesses and teaching financial literacy. Interacting with different businesses on a continuous basis.
The most difficult part of my job: I’m getting old, so I forget that part.
My life philosophy: Learn to adapt.
I am most proud of: My friends and family.
Something that no one knows about me: Hmm, if I said that, then everyone would know. Isn’t that logically impossible?
The quality I like best about myself: I am still curious.
Personal interests and hobbies: I like to travel, to read, to cook, to garden, probably everything but skydiving or bungee jumping.
I laugh at: Most things, except myself.
I am really good at: I am fairly good at many things, but not REALLY good at most.
I admire: People who share my goals but are more accomplished.
Something important I would like you to know about me: What you see is what you get, more or less.