Brooklyn Canarsie Lions prez elected to lead CACCI

Brooklyn Canarsie Lions President Jean Joseph on Thursday was elected the new president of the Brooklyn-based Caribbean-American Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CACCI), succeeding Dr. Roy Hastick, the Grenadian-born CACCI’s late founder and long-standing president, who died on April 8, 2020.

“I am grateful for this opportunity, and thank you for putting your trust in me to take the helm of leadership and steer this esteemed organization through the perilous times in which we live,” said Dominican-born Joseph, a certified public accountant (CPA), in her acceptance speech soon after her election at CACCI’s headquarters on Caton Avenue in Flatbush, Brooklyn.

“I am buoyed on this journey by the sterling legacy of the Founding Father of this organization, the late Dr. the Hon. Roy Hastick,” added the Brooklyn resident. “I also acknowledge the work of all the past chairs and board members, who have served since the founding of the organization in August 1985 to now.

“I’m honored to take over the mantle of leadership that you have passed to me,” Joseph continued. “It is said that leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality. It is toward that view that I am challenged to use my term in office to focus on my vision of growing our membership and strengthening our existing ones.

“With the impactful talent and skills we have among our membership, we can creatively expand our sphere of influence and, in so doing, strengthen the brand that is already a household name,” she said.

Therefore, Joseph said one of the foremost visions of her tenure will be “to source new revenue streams while building on business opportunities for our members.”

She said business education will also be a part of the developmental plan, which, she said, will be accomplished through seminars, trade missions and Heads of Government meetings “and the likes.”

In addition, Joseph said community outreach, which builds new community and corporate partners, will augment the “strengthening and redevelopment efforts of the CACCI Brand.”

She said training, increasing procurement opportunities of Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises, and entrepreneurial development are other benchmarks on her “vision roll”.

“As your President, I am committed to providing the kind of linkages and opportunities for us to do so and much more,” Joseph said. “My leadership will also make an impact on legacy preservation by creating ways to ensure that the name Dr. Roy Hastick remains cemented and synonymous with CACCI.  

“Undoubtedly, there will be challenges ahead as we navigate this new course,” she added. “But I remind you that every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve.

“Let us together find ways of removing the proverbial boulders of obstruction that may, in any way, hinder our progress,” Joseph continued. “If we are to realize our desires and make the communities in which we live and do business a better place to work and raise our families, then we must be vigilant in our efforts toward this cause.”

A graduate of Pace University in New York, where she received a baccalaureate of science in accounting and later attained her status as a CPA, Joseph is an expert in tax planning, estate, trust, and gift tax.

She served as a manager for several blue-chip tax firms and oversaw the preparation and review of financial statements for companies of various complexities. She specializes in the audit and taxation of not-for-profit organizations.

Joseph said she has worked for American Express & Business Services as a manager in the Tax Department at Goldstein, Golub, and Kessler and as a CPA for Anchin, Block, and Anchin and Lionel Lewis.

She is the sole proprietor of Joseph Tax and Consulting Services LLC and the CEO of Joseph Tax and Consulting Services 1, Inc., both in Brooklyn. She excels at servicing various clients, including individuals, corporations, and not-for-profit organizations.

Her corporation received the Minority- and Women-owned Business Enterprise Award from New York State Department of Economic Development.

In 2007, Joseph was inducted by CACCI as a business visionary and member and served as an executive member on the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants board for the Queens/Brooklyn Chapter. 

She is also the past president of the Queens/Brooklyn Chapter of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants and has served as ambassador-at-large for two years.

Joseph serves on the Foundation for Accounting Education (FAE) Committee and the Relationship with the Internal Revenue Service Committee of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants.

A past president of the Brooklyn-based West Indian Day Carnival Association, Inc., Joseph currently serves as treasurer of the Kings County Democratic Committee and chairperson and 4th vice president of the Brooklyn-based Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club.