Our Story

Growing up in the Church, a Christian home, and attending a Christian school is something I used take for granted. I thought everyone sat around at family get togethers and talked ministry. Once I started college, I quickly realized that my life up to this point was anything but normal. However, I found myself gravitating to others “like me” because it was comfortable. This comfort zone led me early on in my career to working in ministry. With a family of my own, we moved from California to Arizona, where I took a job at our church as the Children’s Director. Serving the young families in a brand-new community, I quickly realized the need for preschool/childcare centers in the area. Thankfully, the church leaders supported the idea of opening one on the church campus, utilizing the current nursery/toddler space. Over the next five years, the preschool grew from 22 kids to over 100 each year. I was able to see how the preschool was a ministry of its own, bringing unchurched families to the church! I ended up resigning from the church position and focused on growing the preschool by opening more at other church locations, ultimately growing churches. A few years later, the preschools were full and running on their own, so I was ready for a new challenge. The church where it all started, offered me the position as Church Administrator. For the next few years, my business administration background helped to grow the infrastructure of the church and gave me a more comprehensive understanding of the inner workings of a large church.

Early in 2020, pre-Covid, God put a stirring in my heart to combine my unique dual profession in the church and preschool worlds, and come alongside churches to help them develop and implement preschools and childcare programs of their own, growing churches, and ultimately growing the Kingdom! Since Covid, the need for quality early childhood programs is greater than ever as many have closed and are not expected to reopen. God also showed me during the Covid season that the time is now to take the vision He deposited within me, and use it for His glory.

With over 100 years of combined early childhood experience, our team can assist with everything logistical, from site planning, licensing, contracts, hiring, curriculum, policies and procedures, to the spiritual side of working with church leaders to create parent groups and church connections.

Our desire is to partner with churches in using our successful model of opening a church preschool, and in doing so, reaching the community, as well as bringing in a consistent, recession-proof income to assist with meeting the financial needs of the church. We believe that the local church is the hope of the world!

Thank you for allowing me to share with you how the division of WonderWise, The Church Preschool Experts, came about. We would love to explore the possibility of playing a role in bringing a preschool to your church campus.

Blessings,

Andrea Gillispie
Founder/Lead Consultant