where it all began...
In 1995, Mrs. Bonnie Graves opened the first commercially built child care facility (Ms. B's Daycare and Learning Center) on her family's property in Watson. It wasn't long before the waiting list was growing and they had to expand to meet the demands of the community.
After working in real estate for a couple of years Ms. B's son, Wyatt, decided that he would follow in his mom's footsteps and purchase a child care facility in Walker. He took over that facility in 2001 and shortly after they decided to go into business together. They found land and built their ideal center (all the things they liked and didn't like from their current centers) on N. Corbin Road in Walker in 2003. Within a couple months of having 3 centers, they were offered an opportunity to take over a center that was being shut down by the state in Denham Springs, They took the chance but after a couple years of giving it their all, they decided it wasn't meant to be and sold the facility. They went back to operating the 3 centers until 2011 when there was a center in Mandeville being shut down by the state. From 2011 to 2013, they very quickly grew from 3 centers to 7 and then in 2014 sold 4 locations.
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Christy's story:
Christy was best friends with Bonnie's daughter, Brittany, and took a job working at Ms. B's in 2000. By the time she graduated high school, she had experience in every position in the center so it was a no-brainer that Wyatt needed to hire her to help him manage their growing business. She also got her real estate license so she could help him with his real estate business. She was an integral role in the business operations for over 10 years so when Wyatt decided to sell some of the centers in 2014, she was the first person he offered them to. Wonder Years Child Development Center officially opened on May 1, 2014.
Back Row: Timmy Graves, Brandon Graves, Wyatt Graves, Christy Miranda
Front Row: Bonnie Graves, Dorothy "Grandma" Kinchen, Evelyn "Nannie" Brown, Brittany Graves Phillips
This picture was taken around 2002. It shows everyone that was instrumental in opening our centers. Grandma provided the land for Bonnie to build the first center on.
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