The Green Mission Inc.

09/05/2026

The amazing Green Team of Tank and Rambo. 

We all know that Tank the dog is immortal and will probably live to be 50 but Rambo is no spring chicken himself.

But these two young fur men keep our CRO Jennie Lumpkin. Which enables her to keep the CEO sane. (Me!! Jessica Irving Marschall)

So if any of this sanity falls through the floor, the office will be temporarily closed! … and we actually will be closed until Tuesday! 

09/04/2026

Our offices will be closed Monday in observance of Labor Day.

Labor Day was created to recognize the contributions American workers have made to our communities, our economy, and the places we call home.

At The Green Mission Inc., we see those contributions in the built environment every day — from the craftspeople who constructed our buildings generations ago to the skilled hands carefully deconstructing them today.

This Labor Day, we celebrate the people behind the places.

09/03/2026

As our companies continue to expand, I am always looking to build our local Fredericksburg professional bench. I recently had the opportunity to spend time with Chris Vomund and learn more about his State Farm practice.

I had absolutely no idea how extensive State Farm’s investment services were! Beyond insurance, their offerings include investment advisory services, brokerage mutual funds, 529 plans, annuities, and a range of small-business retirement plans, including 401(k)s, SIMPLE and SEP IRAs, and profit-sharing plans.

And here is my continuing plea to my business clients: please adequately insure the business you are working so hard to build. Review your General Liability, professional liability/E&O, umbrella, and industry-specific coverage regularly. As your revenue, employees, clients, contracts, and assets grow, your risk grows too. An LLC or corporation is not a substitute for proper insurance coverage.

It was great getting to know Chris and adding another local professional to our bench. And a big thank you to the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce for continuing to bring so many local professionals and business owners together. These relationships and connections are one of the best parts of being involved in our local business community.

Fredericksburg Chamber

09/02/2026

🌱 What can 91 years of life teach us about sustainability?

Quite a lot.

We are excited to share the first installment of a new ten-part Youth Coalition series, “Groceries, Grit, and Getting By: Lessons in Thrift from 91 Years in Wisconsin.”

Our Youth Coalition member Annabelle Marschall, along with her father Rick Marschall, interviewed her grandfather, Donald W. Marschall, about how his family lived, budgeted, repaired, reused, and simply “got by” during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s on a Wisconsin teacher’s salary.

Donald remembers starting married life in 1961 on about $89 a month in Army pay, with nearly half of one paycheck going toward a month’s groceries. There was no casually replacing what broke or throwing away what could still be used. Families planned, repaired, stretched, saved, and reused.

As Donald explains, they did not call it sustainability. They called it getting by.

Today, at 91, Donald is also a member of The Green Mission Inc. Youth Coalition and continues to put those principles into practice by conducting prospective property inspections across the Upper Midwest and identifying building materials that deserve a second life.

We especially love that Annabelle helped capture her grandfather’s stories and preserve lessons from one generation for the next. Sustainability is not always about inventing something new. Sometimes it means remembering what previous generations already knew about valuing what we have.

♻️ Read Part 1, “Groceries on Half a Paycheck”: Link in comments

09/01/2026

Seven years ago, I opened The Green Mission Inc, followed shortly thereafter by Probity Appraisal Group and then GM-ESG. And of course MAS LLC 26 years ago.

The best hiring decision I ever made was Jennie Lumpkin, who is now our CRO.

I run my companies differently than most. There is no talk of “market domination.” We have no ad or marketing spend. We hire who we need and make sure they understand our work policies: no set hours, no vacation or sick days to count. You work when you can, around your personal and family schedule, and you just get things done. Health insurance is 100% paid by the company, because I like team members to be healthy and happy.

We do the work that comes to us and make sure it is done extremely thoroughly, quickly, and efficiently. The client who pays us $1,000 is treated exactly as well as the one paying us $10,000.

We have no mission statement or vision beyond this: study the tax code and appraisal research in excruciating detail, deliver top-notch services and deliverables to our clients, and get it done quickly, efficiently, and with seamless communication. That has been the recipe for organic growth. TGMI and Probity now produce 700 to 1,000 IRS Qualified Appraisals a year, GM-ESG has taken on significant corporate projects, and MAS LLC has grown to over 400 clients, all of whom we know by name and with whom I exercise unhealthy boundaries, like texting them tax advice at 1 a.m.

But the beauty of being a business owner is that I can shelve the corporate speak, decide the whole advertising and marketing game is not for me, and have a heck of a lot of fun in the process alongside leaders like Jennie, who shares my entire strategy: “Just get it done right and quickly.”

And it is no coincidence that Jennie and I are both women >50. It is my opinion that women in the tax field are bestowed with superpowers at the age of 50 coupled with a removal of all filters and 100% loss of ability to deal with nonsense.

08/31/2026

The charitable giving landscape changed significantly in 2026, and both donors and nonprofit organizations should understand the new rules before year-end planning begins.

In our latest article, I break down how the One Big Beautiful Bill Act reshapes charitable giving, including:

• A new charitable deduction of up to $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for married couples filing jointly who do not itemize
• A new 0.5% AGI floor for itemized charitable deductions
• A reduced marginal tax benefit for certain itemized deductions for taxpayers in the 37% bracket
• A new 1% taxable-income floor for corporate charitable deductions
• Continued planning opportunities involving appreciated property, Qualified Charitable Distributions, and significant noncash gifts
• The substantiation and qualified-appraisal requirements that become particularly important when donating art, antiques, furnishings, salvaged building materials, and other noncash property

The article also looks ahead to 2027, when the new federal Scholarship Granting Organization tax credit becomes effective. Eligible taxpayers may receive a federal income tax credit of up to $1,700 annually for qualifying contributions to approved scholarship granting organizations in participating states. Unlike a charitable deduction, this is a direct credit against federal income tax liability, making it an important development for both donors and education-focused nonprofits to begin evaluating now.

For donors, the larger message is that timing, structure, and substantiation matter more in 2026. Bunching charitable gifts, evaluating appreciated-property contributions, and coordinating charitable planning with the new deduction limitations can materially affect the tax result.

For nonprofits, these changes create opportunities as well. Millions of taxpayers who take the standard deduction once again have a federal charitable giving incentive, while corporate and major-donor strategies are changing under the new floors and limitations.

At The Green Mission Inc., we see these rules through the intersection of taxation, charitable giving, qualified appraisal, deconstruction, and sustainability. The objective is not simply to identify a deduction. It is to structure and document charitable contributions correctly so that donors can maximize both their philanthropic impact and the tax benefits Congress intended.

📖 Read the full analysis:
Charitable Giving in 2026: How the One Big Beautiful Bill Act Reshapes the Rules for Donors

https://thegreenmissioninc.com/charitable-giving-in-2026-how-the-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-reshapes-the-rules-for-donors/

08/30/2026

Great Work Frankie! 🐾

Frankie recently graduated from his beginning emotional support training program, and he is already making an impression. Whether he is greeting clients or charming everyone he meets at local community events, Frankie brings warmth and joy wherever he goes.

Why does an emotional support animal belong in the workplace? Studies show that interacting with animals lowers cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone, while releasing oxytocin, which promotes calm and connection. The documented benefits include:

✅ Reduced stress levels and lower blood pressure
✅ Improved mental health and emotional resilience
✅ Enhanced social connections among colleagues
✅ Stabilized mood through consistent, positive interaction
✅ Better sleep quality and even boosted immune function

In demanding professional environments, where deadlines, complex client matters, and high-stakes work are the norm, a friendly face and a wagging tail can make a genuine difference in team wellbeing and workplace culture.

At our firms, we believe that prioritizing emotional health alongside professional excellence makes us better advisors, better CPAs, better appraisers, and better colleagues.

Frankie is a daily reminder of that commitment.

Stop by and say hello if you see us at an upcoming local event. Frankie loves meeting new people, and we love introducing him!

📖 Learn more about the benefits of emotional support animals: https://aihcp.net/2024/09/04/9-key-benefits-of-emotional-support-animals-for-healthcare-professionals/

08/27/2026

Great afternoon in Richmond with the Virginia Society of CPAs Women’s Collective.

The sessions were excellent: “Speak With Authority: Authentic Voice & Executive Presence” with Michelle Mercurio; “When the Ground Shifts: Finding Clarity, Courage & Choice in Career Transition” with Friderike Butler; and “Building Influence Through Communication and Trust: The Missing Piece of Client Relationships, Collaboration and Leadership” with Sandee Byrd.

An added bonus was making a brilliant new CPA friend, Melody Peace of Rappahannock Electric Cooperative, who recently moved to the Fredericksburg area after years of experience in Chattanooga with the Tennessee Valley Authority. So happy the universe dropped her at our table along with my other new friend Gail Jensen, Kendra Morgan, Monish Banga, and Megan King.

I also brought my daughter, Caroline Marschall, who is finishing her M.S. in Accounting at William & Mary and plans to build her career working throughout our companies. I told her this was an opportunity to see how “normal” CPAs act and work.

I took in all of the excellent work/life guidance. I will also continue doing things my own way, Self care is another 2L of Diet Coke and a peaceful 12-hour stretch working through some exciting component of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. 📚 Some people relax differently.

Thank you to Michelle Mercurio, Friderike Butler, Sandee Byrd, and the Virginia Society of CPAs for a great event and for continuing to create spaces where women in the profession can learn from one another, build relationships, and talk candidly about leadership and career development.

Virginia Society of CPAs Women’s Collective

WomenInBusiness CPA ProfessionalDevelopment

08/25/2026

I had the opportunity to meet Patti Schutte, founder and Chief Presentation Strategist of Be Brilliant Presentation Group, who is now a fellow Fredericksburg-area business owner.

First, Patti disclosed that she was a math major as an undergraduate, so I immediately knew we were going to get along.

Patti has built an impressive business around something that is almost the exact opposite of what I do. She is a certified World Class Speaking Coach, presentation trainer and professional learning facilitator who founded her business after being asked to help improve presenters at a major international technology conference. She has since coached nearly 2,000 clients and developed her Resultations Method™, which focuses on turning presentations into business communications designed to produce actual outcomes.

And this is exactly why I enjoyed meeting her.

I serve a deliberately narrow slice of my clients’ needs. My work is quantitative, tax and economic-policy driven. Give me tax law, financial modeling, R&D credit calculations, entity structure or the economic consequences of a transaction and I am very comfortable.

Ask me how to deliver the message, structure a major corporate presentation, prepare speakers for a conference, communicate an organizational vision or make sure the audience actually walks away understanding and acting on what was said...and I draw a blank. Patti’s company works directly in that space, including presentation strategy, executive and team coaching, conference-speaker preparation, message development and delivery.

This year has been a fabulous period of expansion across all four of our companies, and one thing that growth has reinforced for me is that to run MAS LLC successfully, I have been intentionally building a much larger bench of go-to professionals whose expertise complements ours.

So when a client asks me a question about corporate messaging, presentation delivery or running a successful conference, I can now confidently respond:

“I have no idea. Let’s focus on the QBI alternative calculation methodology and call Patti.”

Very glad to have another talented business owner like Patti here in the Fredericksburg community!

08/18/2026

🏚️🌲 What is an antique barn actually worth in today’s reclaimed lumber market?

Our newest article and accompanying video take a deep dive into the architectural salvage of antique barns and the secondary market for reclaimed barn lumber, including how that market has changed over the past decade.

The research points to an important shift: the premium has moved from surface to structure. Common barn board and siding have generally softened in real terms, while hand-hewn timbers, large-dimension white oak, American chestnut, heart pine, and other scarce structural materials continue to command meaningful premiums.

The article and video examine:

🪵 Current 2026 market values for barn board, siding, dimensional lumber, hand-hewn timbers, flooring, chestnut, oak, and other reclaimed materials

📉 The 2016–2026 market cycle, from the farmhouse-chic boom through the pandemic lumber spike and today's more selective buyer's market

🏗️ Deconstruction versus demolition, including why recovery, processing, de-nailing, kiln drying, storage, and transportation materially affect value

💰 Where barn materials are actually bought and sold, from dismantlers and remillers to salvage yards, specialty dealers, nonprofit reuse organizations, and online marketplaces

📊 The difference between retail pricing and Fair Market Value, and why finished reclaimed flooring sitting in a dealer's showroom is not an appropriate direct comparison for unprocessed lumber coming off a standing barn

❤️ Charitable donation and appraisal considerations, including qualified appraisal requirements, Form 8283, the $5,000 and $500,000 substantiation thresholds, and lessons from Mann v. United States and Loube v. Commissioner

One of the most interesting conclusions is that there really isn't a single national "barn lumber market." It is a fragmented, regional market where species, dimensions, historic fabrication, condition, processing stage, transportation, and access can determine whether a barn is a valuable salvage asset or a demolition liability.

♻️ And from a sustainability perspective, every antique barn that can be responsibly deconstructed represents an opportunity to keep finite, old-growth material in circulation rather than sending it to a landfill.

Jessica Irving Marschall

Read the full market and valuation analysis and watch the accompanying video:

https://youtu.be/1oRFJFcERxs

🏚️🌲 What is an antique barn actually worth in today’s reclaimed lum...