Our Team
Amanda Pitard
Owner, Graduate Gemologist
Amanda graduated from El Dorado High School and attended the University of Central Arkansas in Conway. There she earned her Master's Degree in Physical Therapy so she could begin helping people. Amanda moved home to El Dorado in 1998 and worked at SAMA Healthcare Services as their Director of Rehabilitation. She started helping out at MPJ in 2001 on a part-time basis. She found herself falling in love with the trade and enrolled in gemology classes in 2004. While raising a family and working at the store, she dove into studying the trade and has been dedicated to learning everything about it ever since. She graduated from the Gemological Institute of America in Carlsbad, California in 2017, earning her Graduate Gemologist Degree – the highest degree attainable in gems. She loves educating people about diamonds so they can truly understand and appreciate not only their beauty, but how each diamond is unique and has its own story to tell. She also loves design work and recreating inherited pieces by turning them into something that is unique for her clients.
Wildflower Pope
Office Manager and Sales Associate
Wildflower has been a fundamental member of the Murphy-Pitard family since February of 2014. She has exceled not only on the sales floor as one of our primary Sales Team members, but also as our Office Manager. She is constantly taking inventory, upholding the office behind the scenes, bonding with customers and cleaning and repairing client's beautiful pieces. She has over twenty years of customer service and administrative experience which makes her ideal for her position at Murphy-Pitard. Wildflower also enjoys training our new Sales Team members and setting others up for success. Her favorite part about working at Murphy-Pitard is assisting clients in finding their perfect piece and the ability to learn something new every day
Teri Beth Brumley
Sales Associate
Teri Beth was born and raised in El Dorado, Arkansas. She is a 2009 graduate of El Dorado High School and attended South Arkansas Community College. Teri Beth was a member of the El Dorado Service League for two years. She started working at MPJ in 2017. Teri Beth has an eye for fashion and uses that to help MPJ customers find the perfect jewelry treasure. Her cheerful smile and contagious laugh fill the entire store and are sure to brighten anyone’s day.
Lainey Walthall
Sales Associate
Lainey was raised in Magnolia, Arkansas and attended Columbia Christian School. She graduated from Southern Arkansas University in 2018 with her Bachelor’s in Musical Theatre. Lainey first became associated with MPJ when she was the lead in a play they sponsored at the local arts center. She came to work for them a little over a year later upon graduating from college. In addition to being on the sales floor, Lainey enjoys designing window displays, planning events, and taking pictures for the store’s social media pages. In her free time, Lainey still enjoys acting in shows at South Arkansas Arts Center.
Patrick Turgeon
Bench Jeweler
The newest member of the MPJ team, Patrick, currently resides in his hometown of Springhill, Louisiana. He graduated from the Texas Institute of Jewelry Technology and has been in the industry for over 27 years. Patrick had his own jewelry store in Arkadelphia for 10 years. He also worked at Lee Michael’s in Shreveport and, most recently, Bank’s Jewelers in Camden. He was with Bank’s for 8 years before coming to work at MPJ in January of 2019. In his free time, Patrick enjoys riding dirt bikes with his two kids and spending time with his three grandchildren.
Mike Jimenez
Master Watchmaker
Mike is a certified Master Watchmaker from Upstate New York with over 40 years of watch repair experience. He has the amazing capability to repair all brands of watches including high-end timepieces. He was employed by the renowned Mann’s Jewelers in Rochester, New York for 35 years in which he honed his skills and expertise, all while maintaining his own personal watch repair business. Mike and his lovely wife, Cheryl, have three children and one beautiful granddaughter. He enjoys walking, traveling and spending time with his family.
Don Wilson
Horologist
Our professional watch repairman, Don, attended Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas and was a graduate of Bradley University Technical School of Horology in Peoria, Illinois. Don comes from a long line of watchmakers. “My father, brother and uncles were all watchmakers who helped me in my training”, says Don. He and his wife, Becky, have been married since 1972 and have three daughters. The Wilsons migrated from Pocahontas to El Dorado to spend more time with their ten wonderful grandchildren. Fun fact, Don was a Justice of the Peace in Pocahontas and has married over 2,000 couples!