After almost a year and a half stint serving on the Hot Springs Village Board of Directors and as the Corporate Treasurer, Jama Wegeng Lopez has accepted a position as the Controller for the HSVPOA. Lopez was sworn in as a Board Member on April 20, 2022.

Lopez, the mother of one son (deceased) and a native of Villa Grove, Illinois, has lived in various areas due to her late husband’s corporate transfers.

After graduating in 1988 from the University of Utah, magna cum lade, with a bachelor of science degree in accounting, Lopez went on to certify as a CPA in 1990.

Lopez began her accounting career as an auditor with KPMG Peat Marwick, San Antonio, Texas. Other than being a public accounting auditor, Jama worked as an internal auditor and corporate controller.

Eventually, Lopez started her business as a contracted CFO/Controller for various non-profits and not-for-profits in and around San Antonio. This creative niche provided a much sought-after service for entities with unexpected vacancies in their accounting and finance departments. Often serving up to three companies simultaneously, Lopez would manage the accounting departments and assist in finding a permanent Controller or Chief Financial Officer.

Lopez sat on the Texas Society of CPAs Board and the San Antonio Chapter of CPAs. She was elected President of the San Antonio Chapter for 2001/2002.

Jama and Mike Chapman moved to Hot Springs Village in August of 2011. Sitting on two lots, their home was completed in September of 2013 and is often described as a garage with a house attached. Jama and Mike collect, restore, and maintain classic cars, so the extra garage space is much needed. Currently, Jama has six classics, and Mike has four. They have a shop in the Gasoline Alley area. Jama claims it was the car shops of Hot Springs Village that convinced her to make the move from San Antonio, Texas.

Jama is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant in Texas and Arkansas. Upon being sworn in on the Hot Springs Village Board of Directors, Lopez was elected by her fellow Board Members to serve as Corporate Treasurer.

Lopez said, “The decision to resign from the Board to serve as Controller was very difficult. I loved working with my fellow board members, but, ultimately, it came down to my knowledge and experience being needed at the POA.”