Staff
Our Staff
Administration, Preschool & Kindergarten Teachers and Assistants
Sue Nelson
Preschool & Kindergarten Director
Sue has been in the Early Education field since 1993 where she first started her teaching ministry at Maranatha Christian Preschool in San Diego. Originally from Minnesota, Sue has served as Children’s Ministry Director at Grace Chapel in San Diego, as well as Fellowship of Woodlands in Houston, Texas. She spent 12 year in San Diego before moving to Arizona in 2004. Her passion is to create a love for learning for all children and teaching them about the love of Jesus. She holds credential as a Site Supervisor in Early Education and has been the Director at Family of Christ since 2004. Sue also has had firsthand experience in visiting other countries on mission trips and seeing the world from a new perspective. Her endeavors have taken her to Romania, Thailand and Amsterdam. Sue can be reached at: (480) 759-9004.
Sandy Hand
Business Administrator
Sandra Hand has recently joined Family of Christ as the Manager of Operations. Before joining Family of Christ, Sandra was an Assistant Teacher and a Lead Teacher in the two-year old class at God’s Garden Preschool for four years.
She also served as the Childcare Coordinator for Foothills Baptist Church for almost 10 years. Concurrent with that position, she was the lead teacher for the Mothers of Preschooler (MOPS) program for 10 years. Sandra also volunteered as a preschool Sunday school teacher, preschool AWANA teacher and a Vacation Bible School volunteer at Foothills Baptist Church.
Before beginning a career in Early Education, Sandra was a Corporate Human Resource Manager for a multinational environmental engineering firm for sixteen years. She is a graduate of New Mexico State University with an BBA and MBA. Sandy can be reached at: (480) 759-4047.
Fred Gerlach
Pastor
Pastor Fred Gerlach, a graduate from Pace University in Westchester, New York started his career on Wall Street and worked for financial institutions and various companies for over 20 years. This included the investment banking firm Solomon Brothers, as well as the City of Yonkers and Pepsi Bottling. Raised in the Roman Catholic faith, he was accepted into Immanuel Lutheran Church in Danbury, Connecticut in 1995 through adult confirmation. In September 2001, Pastor entered Concordia Seminary St. Louis and graduated in 2005. He was called to serve Bethany Lutheran Church in Trenton, New Jersey of the English District, and served there for 13 years before coming to Family of Christ in 2018. Pastor Fred and his wife have three daughters. Pastor Fred can be reached at: (480) 759-4047.
5 Year Old, Kindergarten
Karly Jensen
Lead Teacher, Kindergarten
4 Year Old, Pre-K
Lydia Armstrong
Lead Teacher, Pre-K
Lore Borras
Lead Teacher, Pre-K
Robin Bontrager
Lead Teacher, Pre-K
Kathi Dwyer
Pre-K Assistant
3 Year Old, Preschool
Jennylyn Amandy
Lead Teacher, Preschool
Susie Laiefsky
Assistant, Preschool
Tera McDonald
Lead Teacher, Preschool
Deb Conry
Assistant, Preschool
2 Year Old, Early Preschool
Carrie DeSouza
Lead Teacher, Early Preschool
Abby Northup
Lead Teacher, Early Preschool
Claudine Hart
Assistant, Early Preschool
Kids Club
Kathi Dwyer
Assistant, Kids Club
A Community of Learning
Our dedicated staff with low teacher-to-student ratios create an environment rich with attention and encouragement. We are committed to knowing each student’s strengths, weaknesses and interests. We believe parents are the most important and influential people in a child’s development. For this reason, we provide many opportunities for parents to be involved through the P.I.T. Crew (Parent Involvement Team), volunteering opportunities and special events.
Call to schedule a tour! (480) 759-9004