Jerry Willey: Builder, Bridge Maker, and Champion for Community and Clients

Celebrating the legacy of a partner whose leadership shaped Jones & Roth and whose public service strengthened an entire region.

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A Northwest Beginning — and a Partnership That Endured

Jerry Willey’s career began in Walla Walla, Washington, where he entered the accounting profession with the steady, people first approach that would define his life’s work. At the same time, Dan Mueller was building his own career in Portland. The two were part of the same regional Northwest CPA firm — colleagues who shared a similar work ethic, a commitment to clients, and a belief in doing things the right way.

As their careers progressed, Jerry moved to Hillsboro and Dan to Forest Grove, each continuing to serve clients within the same firm. But over time, it became clear that the firm wasn’t functioning as well as it needed to. Jerry and Dan knew they needed a stronger foundation and a more forward-thinking environment.

They turned to someone they trusted: Roger Noah, a respected CPA who had recently moved to Hillsboro to manage a Jones & Roth office following the firm’s acquisition of a local practice. Jerry and Dan admired Roger’s leadership and the reputation of Jones & Roth. Conversations began, possibilities opened, and in 1990, Jerry and Dan merged into Jones & Roth.

At that time, Jones & Roth operated two west side offices:

• Hillsboro, where Jerry and Roger worked side by side
• Forest Grove, where Dan continued serving his clients

Jerry immediately appreciated the firm’s progressive mindset. The partners were strong businesspeople with sharp instincts — anticipating change, adapting quickly, and always moving the firm forward. The environment was collaborative, enjoyable, and energizing. Jerry felt at home.

Building a Firm — and a Culture — Together

When Jerry and Dan joined Jones & Roth, they entered a firm with a rising generation of partners who were at similar stages in their careers. Together, they helped build the foundation that still supports the firm today.

They strengthened Jones & Roth’s longstanding focus on:

• Deep community involvement
• Exceptional client service
• Helping clients navigate business challenges
• Developing people and creating opportunity

Jerry’s personality — warm, outgoing, and genuinely interested in others — made him a natural advisor. He built a large, loyal practice of clients who trusted him not only with their finances, but with their goals, their challenges, and their futures.

His colleagues felt that warmth just as deeply. Jamie, who worked closely with Jerry for years, recalls that he had an extraordinary way of making you feel like the most important person in the room — fully present, fully listening, and genuinely invested. That gift for connection shaped the culture of the firm as much as any policy or process. It showed up in quiet conversations, in late evening tax seasons, and even in the occasional bit of good-natured mischief, like the time Jamie and Dixie filled his office with fake smoke during a client meeting. Jerry emerged not irritated, but smiling, his unmistakable expression lifting beneath what many still say was one of the best mustaches ever to grace the firm.

Those relationships — and that presence — would eventually lead him somewhere unexpected: a second career in public service.

From Trusted Advisor to Public Servant

Jerry’s clients and community connections saw something in him — a steady, thoughtful leader with a gift for bringing people together. In 1992, they encouraged him to run for the Hillsboro City Council. He won, serving while continuing his full client workload at Jones & Roth.

On the council, Jerry played a key role in the finance department, helping manage the city’s budget and long term financial strategy. After five years of service, he stepped down in 1997 to focus fully on his clients and the firm.

But Hillsboro wasn’t done with him.

Community leaders approached him again — this time to run for Mayor of Hillsboro. Jerry agreed, and in January 2009 he was sworn in.

He served as a highly engaged, impactful part time mayor while still advising clients at Jones & Roth. His leadership helped shape some of Hillsboro’s most defining projects, including:

• Bringing the Hillsboro Hops to the city
• Supporting the development of Orenco Station and Orenco Plaza

His dual roles often blended into daily firm life. So frequent were his mayoral responsibilities that “Mayor Time” even earned its own time code — a lighthearted reflection of how Jerry balanced public service with professional commitment.

Yet even with this expanded responsibility, Jerry never stopped bringing a sense of joy and connection into the firm. Jamie often recalls seeing him at the Christmas Party, dancing with Judy in a way that made every room feel lighter. Years later, as she passed the bronze likeness of his face at Jerry Willey Plaza, she found herself reflecting on how well it captured both the respected public figure and the mentor who supported her throughout her career.

Today, Jerry Willey Plaza stands as a testament to his commitment to the community he loved.

Jerry retired from Jones & Roth in 2010 but continued serving as mayor until 2016. After a brief break to travel, enjoy family, and spend time with his grandchildren, public service called again.

In 2019, Jerry became a Washington County Commissioner, a role he will retire from at the end of this year. He has enjoyed working on a wide range of initiatives — many involving former clients — and one of his favorites has been the Salmonberry Trail Project, transforming a historic rail line into a trail connecting Banks to Tillamook.

A Legacy of Service, Leadership, and Heart

Across his career, Jerry influenced countless clients, colleagues, and community members. He valued the profession deeply, believing that numbers tell the beginning of a story — and open the door to meaningful, impactful work.

He built a practice on trust. He built a community on service. And he helped build a firm that continues to reflect his values.

For those who knew him best, including Jamie, the greatest tribute is not just in the buildings, projects, or recognitions bearing his name, but in the memories he left behind — the humor, the generosity, the steadiness, and the unmistakable presence that shaped not just a firm or a city, but the people fortunate enough to work beside him.

Jerry didn’t just advise businesses — he strengthened a region. His legacy lives on in the firm he helped shape, the city he helped lead, and the many lives he touched along the way.