Member Moment: A CPA love story

Meet the CPAs who weren't accounting for love, but found it anyway. 

In 2017, Ashley Moore-Ventris and her husband, Jacob Ventris, met in the honors dorm at Oklahoma State University (OSU). 

"We found ourselves surrounded by engineering and science majors; that is, business majors, especially accounting majors, were few and far between," the couple said, looking back at the start of their relationship.

The two discovered they were the only accounting majors in the residence hall, and they had several classes together. 

"We quickly became friends and spent many late nights studying for our accounting exams in the Stout Hall living room, often ending up in laughing fits over accounting puns and jokes," they said. 

After nearly two years of study nights, joining the same campus organizations and carpooling to community service activities, Ashley and Jacob decided to take their friendship to the next level.

While their love bloomed, so did their career prospects. Jacob found a passion for tax accounting and Ashley decided on the auditing path. 

In addition to their studies, both Jacob and Ashley dedicated much of their time to community service and involvement. 

While in college, Ashley served as a peer mentor for the Spears School of Business and as a campus representative for Gleim Exam Prep. 

As a peer mentor, Ashley guided 12 incoming freshmen through their first semester of college and encouraged them to get involved on campus.

"While being a peer mentor allowed me to share my experience, I would argue that I learned as much, if not more, from my mentees," Ashley said. "Since graduating and becoming a full-time professional, I've continued to pursue this passion as a mentor with the Spears School of Business mentoring program."

As a campus representative for Gleim, Ashley promoted exam preparation materials to more than 200 accounting students on campus and informed students of the various accounting certifications available.

Jacob also made time for meaningful community involvement while at school. During his 2017 winter break, he traveled to Houston after Hurricane Harvey to help with the reconstruction efforts through Baptist Collegiate Ministries.

The pair dedicated time to Delta Sigma Pi, OSU's business fraternity. Jacob served as a member from 2018 to 2019, and Ashley served as a member, as well as the fraternity's faculty liaison in 2018. 

After earning their bachelor's degrees in 2019, their master's in 2020 and passing their CPA exams on the first attempt, the pair set off to find dream jobs to fit their dream relationship.

In the fall of 2020, Jacob began his career at BKD in Oklahoma City as a tax accountant, and Ashley began her career at HoganTaylor LLP as an auditor.

Jacob and Ashley settled into their post-college careers, but there was still one more important deal to seal. 

In July 2021, Jacob asked Ashley to review a set of financial statements "for his father's small business."

To Ashley's surprise, the financial statements contained a VLOOKUP formula that, when the user entered a number from 1-50, returned a memory of their time together.

"After I entered 1-50, laughing after each memory (and crying after a few), Jacob told me to enter '51,'" Ashley recalled. 

The formula returned the question, "Will you marry me?"

After their wedding this past winter, the two made bold career moves. Ashley accepted a position as a cost accountant at Kimray, an oil and gas valve manufacturing company in Oklahoma City, and Jacob achieved his dream of owning his own business when he acquired the practice of a retiring CPA in El Reno.

Q&A with the couple:

Wire: How did you balance the challenging goal of earning your bachelor's and master's degrees in four years with your community and leadership involvement?

Ashley: Balancing a part-time job and campus activities, while maintaining a 4.0 GPA, was a challenge that pushed me to my limits. There were so many late nights and early mornings studying, but the bigger picture of becoming a CPA kept me motivated. In fact, being involved on campus and in the community were critical to my academic success. It was so tempting to forget the activities that energized me outside the classroom and focus just on school, but I would have lost such a huge part of myself. Keeping a balance of the things that I "needed" to do" and the things I "wanted" to do made all the difference; it's a practice I continue to this day.

Jacob: Balancing community service with school proved to be a challenge at times during my college career. However, the key was getting involved in organizations that would encourage and organize community service events as a group. I was involved with Baptist Collegiate Ministries while I was at OSU and this provided me with opportunities to volunteer as part of a group for different community service events.  Having a group of like minded individuals that prioritize community service helped me keep my goal of performing community service from getting lost in the shuffle of life and school.

Wire: Post-graduation, how do you continue (or plan to continue) your community involvement?

Ashley: Since graduating, I have had the privilege to continue serving the Oklahoma City community by volunteering with non-profit organizations like the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma and Citizens Caring for Children, an organization that serves foster children and parents throughout Oklahoma. I also serve each week in my church, Council Road Baptist Church, as a Sunday school teacher for the three-year-old group.

Jacob: Since graduating college, I have been volunteering with my church in Oklahoma City, and I have had the opportunity to volunteer at corporate volunteer events with Ashley's work.  However, I am planning to become more involved both with community service through my church and with other philanthropic organizations in my community.

Wire: Overall, why is community involvement and service important to you?

Ashley: Community involvement and service are important to me because of my passion for making a difference, whether that be at work, at home or in my community. While I value my ability to make a difference as a CPA, my impact cannot end with my workday. Instead, it is crucial that I find ways to pursue that passion in every area of my life. Not only does it make the community better, it makes me better!

Jacob: Community involvement has been important to me long before I even thought to pursue accounting. No matter who you are or what your profession is, investing your time into your community is critical to your growth. Community service makes us realize there is more to the world than just ourselves. Furthermore, as CPAs, it is critical that we take an interest in serving our communities. The communities that we live in have plenty of accountants to choose from with the rise of online services that compete for business. Being invested in the well being and growth of our communities is what will set us apart as professionals and give us common ground with our clients.

Wedding photography by Pansy Garrison, Blossom & Co. Photography.