May, 2007 - From our home to yours:

Greetings Folks

It is good to know who is serving you. For those who need "credentials", here are some of ours! For those needing reassurance that there is warm flesh and blood who can empasize with you, here we are - Bob, Maxine and Andrea McLellan! It is so exciting to look back to what God has done and to look forward to what he is doing for our family and business.

Our business milestones:
1985 - we started home educating our two children, Andrea and Andrew, who are now adults
1986 - we started ministering to other home schooling families by providing information and encouragement
1993 - we officially started JOY Center of Learning as a business, selling only one book and talking lots!! Over the years we expanded and now carry home education resources, health products, personal growth and development tools, environmenally friendly cleaning products, gas saving devices for your vehicle, and much more.
1999 to 2005 - we home educated two girls from our community
2003 - we moved all of the stock out of our house and into a warehouse across town
2005 - we celebrated our 20th year (and unfortunately final) of home education! We are still very involved with the home educating community.
2007 - we renovated our warehouse to acommodate a large ministry centre where we can host seminars, training sessions, and classes - whatever we need to offer. We also now have a more "store like" layout for when folks want to come by to shop.

Thank you to those who have helped JOY grow with your comments, encouragement and purchases through these many years. Welcome to those who are meeting us for the first time. We welcome the opportunity to serve you and to get to know you as well. We thank God for where we are now and for the opportunity to help you and your family to succeed.

Our Mission:
– to equip individuals and families with the tools they need to succeed and to develop in their lives spiritually, physically, and academically.

Our Goal:
– to provide foundational spiritual and academic resources, along with products to keep you physically and mentally healthy. Many of our products foster spiritual and character development – that is not by accident! Our academic resources give great results; do not have a lot of repetitive busy work; are easy to use with a minimum of pre-planning (if any!); and are adaptable to any learning or teaching style. Whether for academics, spiritual growth, physical health, or even your cleaning needs, we have chosen quality products that we KNOW work well and that complement each other. That is why you won't see six or seven different core (and often conflicting) math and/or English programs within our catalogue pages, or a dizzying number of choices in any one product area. Since we have searched for and found what we feel to be the best, why confuse you with a dozen other possible choices?

Our Personal Educational Philosophy:
– to build each individual, whether child or adult, spiritually and in Godly character. Learning and growth are life-long processes. Secondly, to train children in life skills, physically, and mentally in that we teach them to think and be creative, and academically by laying strong foundations in math and English. This goes beyond filling their heads with facts and "school work." They also need time to play and to minister to others.

If you are NOT a home educating family or individual:
Of course, our spiritual, creativity, thinking and physical development resources are suitable to anyone. Please be sure to check out the great educational resources anyway, you may be surprised at how they could help you to grow too or how you can use them in a unique ministry.

For current or potential home educators:
We have sample lessons, teaching tips and guidance ready for you – just tell us your needs. Specific recommendations for choosing resources for various ages of children, and tailor-made curriculum beyond the general recommendations listed are available to you. We promise we won't pressure you into anything!

For home and health products:
Ask for samples and comprehensive information about the excellent products we carry. Again, we will help you make the right choices for your personal needs.

We have many exciting new resources to assist you in the areas of spiritual, mental, academic, and physical needs.

We are only a phone call or email away so do not hesitate to call. REMEMBER: we are in Ontario – Eastern Standard Time (three hours ahead of the west coast and one hour behind the east coast – no Sunday or before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. EST calls please!)

"JOY" to you and yours – with
Jesus as Lord,
Others to serve for God,
You (yourself)
to develop spiritually and academically. May God bless you in this new and exciting year, and guide you along whatever path He leads you.

Bob, Maxine and Andrea McLellan