Peebles native builds accounting firm serving businesses nationwide

A Peebles native is building an accounting practice in Southern California while keeping one foot in Adams County. Christopher Newman, founder of Newman Bookkeeping & Accounting, LLC, has launched the firm from Fontana, California, with services aimed at small and service-based businesses across Southern California and nationwide.

The company was filed in California on Dec. 11, 2025, and is listed as active. Public records show the principal office at 4989 Agave Ave. in Fontana, and Christopher J. Newman is named as the registered agent. For local readers, the key point is not just that Newman left Ohio for California, but that he turned a hometown work ethic into a business model built around remote, cloud-based service.

Newman’s firm focuses on the unglamorous accounting tasks that often determine whether a business grows or stalls: financial reporting and analysis, accounts receivable and payable management, payroll processing, and sales tax compliance. He also emphasizes QuickBooks Online and holds advanced certification as a ProAdvisor, a credential path Intuit says is designed for accountants and bookkeepers and now includes more than 500,000 ProAdvisors. Intuit also says its ProAdvisor Academy offers certification, badges, training, CPE credits and recertification, tools that can help a small firm signal credibility in a crowded field.

His résumé reflects a long academic climb. Newman earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with an accounting focus from Shawnee State University, later completed an MBA in Accounting at Azusa Pacific University, and also studied education and school business administration at the University of Rio Grande and the University of Dayton. Azusa Pacific reported in January 2022 that he graduated magna cum laude and received its Outstanding Accounting Student award, the school’s highest honor for the top MBA graduating student.

That path matters in Adams County because Newman’s story is rooted there. He had originally planned to go into teaching business education, then shifted into accounting and business when that plan changed. His upbringing in Ohio, along with involvement in church and community, shaped the values he says still guide his work: hard work, humility, integrity and accountability. He now lives in Rancho Cucamonga with his wife, Larini, and their two sons, and he still serves on the Peebles Village Council. For Adams County entrepreneurs, his career shows how local roots can become a professional advantage long after a graduate leaves home.