They Hired a Nurse!
Some career paths are carefully planned.
Others take a few unexpected turns.
Amanda Tuttle’s story includes both.
Before joining F&C as a Tribal Senior Grant Accountant, Amanda spent eight years as a cardiovascular ICU nurse, cared for pediatric heart transplant patients in Nashville, helped manage a family cattle farm, and found her way back to accounting through a path she never expected.
The more time you spend talking with Amanda, the more you realize her story isn’t really about changing careers.
It’s about helping people.
We asked Amanda to share a little about her journey, what motivates her, and the experiences that have shaped who she is today. As you’ll see, she tells her story far better than we ever could.
Tell me a little about yourself.
I’m from Stroud (born and raised!) and have lived here the majority of my life.
I lived in Nashville for a time, and then I decided to trade one crazy Broadway for
a very different Broadway.
This one has a few less honky tonks!
I moved back home to take care of my grandparents. I don’t know who thought it was a good idea to put me in charge of a 40-acre cattle farm, but here we are.
How did you first come to F&C?
When I landed back in Oklahoma, I had to decide if I was going to stay in healthcare or finally make the switch to accounting.
I had been working on my accounting degree at OSU through the pandemic and applied at F&C
on a whim (more like a hope and a prayer!), before applying for my Oklahoma nursing license.
Tracy called me almost instantly, set up the interview within a day or two, and sent a job offer right after that.
It all happened within a few days!
Sometimes life works itself out better than you could have planned!
Did you always see yourself working in this field,
or did life take you in an unexpected direction?
Life is full of surprises!
I was a cardiovascular ICU nurse for 8 years. I come from a family of accountants and always wanted to be “different”, so I went into healthcare. My uncle operated his CPA firm starting in 1960, my grandmother loved to tell everyone how she used to do payroll by hand with a ledger book, and my mom worked her way up to comptroller.
I spent most of my career at The Children’s Hospital at OU Medical Center, but moved on to Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in Nashville, TN, to start working with heart transplant patients.
I wasn’t planning on moving home, but life had other plans for me.
When I started at F&C, my coworkers joked when I came on board “They hired a nurse!” Of course, I was enrolled at OSU working on my accounting degree and had previously worked in accounting with my mom. I also helped my family with their bookkeeping with their various businesses.
I had always loved both nursing and accounting, but post-Covid, I was ready to make the switch.
Who has had the biggest impact on you during your time at F&C?
I wouldn’t be here telling my story without Scott and Melissa.
On paper, a former nurse doesn’t look like a strong accounting candidate, but they both saw potential and wasted no time in giving me the foundation I needed to be a strong accountant.
I still learn something new every single day, but they both have given me opportunity after opportunity to grow to my fullest potential. I feel like we’ve only tapped the surface!
What part of your work do you enjoy most?
I absolutely love working with the Tribes.
I think my nursing background gives me an advantage in this area. I love knowing how something works that is somewhat specialized and being able to teach that to someone else. Whether it’s the human body or proper accounting methods, I like going into an area where someone needs help and being able to give them the reassurance that we’re here to assist and its not on their shoulders to figure it out alone.
I love working one-on-one with the program directors to set them up for success. They spend the majority of their day providing valuable services to their communities. If I can bring my service to the table and help them meet that goal, I feel like I’ve contributed something valuable to a bigger cause.
It might just be a piece of the puzzle, but I like knowing that I contributed in some way.
I hope the biggest takeaway from our work is that we’re here to help. Our goal is for you to be successful. When our clients or team members are successful, everyone wins.
What motivates you to do your best work?
I take a lot of pride in my work and I’m always in competition with myself to do better than I did the day before. There will never be a day where I’ve learned everything there is, but I am motivated by the feeling of knowing I’ve added another tool to my tool belt to overcome the next hurdle.
What is something people might be surprised to learn about you?
I always tell everyone that I have an analytical brain, not a creative brain! Don’t ask me to be artistic or creative. I don’t have it in me! However, if I win the lottery, don’t be surprised if I move off grid to a cabin in Alaska. I have no survival skills, I don’t know how to fish or hunt, but I feel like my lottery winnings will make this irrelevant. I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it!
How have you seen the firm or
your department change over
the years?
I’ve been lucky enough to see strength in my time here. There’s always going to be changes in any area, but I’ve had the privilege of watching my coworkers grow in their knowledge and abilities. I feel like we’ve only gotten better as time has gone on.
What advice would you give
to someone who is new to the team or just starting out?
Talk to everyone! Some of my best learning opportunities have come from listening to others discuss their experiences. Whether its other managers, other GL accountants, AP staff, Client Payroll… We’ve all experienced unusual circumstances and I would encourage taking part in those conversations. Sometimes it’s the most unsuspecting piece of information that will become useful to you when you least expect it.
What are you most proud of
in your career?
I take the most pride in the small moments. I like teaching others and whether it’s a fellow coworker, a program director, or an elected official… any time we’re talking about something, and you see the moment where it clicks for them… that brings me the most joy. I did my job to the best of my ability if someone says, “Oh, Amanda taught me this.” Or “I know how to do this because Amanda said…”
When you think about the impact you want to have, and what being “Good To Count On” means, what comes to mind?
I think this relates back to what I take the most pride in. When I walk away at the end
of the day, the most important thing to me, is that those around me are better off
because of my contribution.
Whether that’s in their knowledge base, making their jobs easier to perform, or improving outcomes in the services they’re able to provide, I want to leave every person and area better off than I found it.
The same is true for the firm. With our clients, we want them to walk away at the end of the day and say that their position is better because F&C was a part of it.
To me, that is “Good To Count On”. We’re better because of you.
Amanda's journey is a reminder that careers don't always follow a straight line,
and sometimes that's exactly what makes them meaningful.
Whether she’s helping a client understand something new, encouraging a teammate, or reflecting on the
unexpected turns that brought her to F&C, Amanda approaches each day with curiosity, humility,
and a genuine desire to leave people better than she found them.
We are grateful she’s part of the F&C team, and we’re even more grateful she shared a little of her story with us.