A two-time La Sierra University graduate, Lieutenant JG Andrea Gilkey is currently stationed with the U.S. Marines in Twentynine Palms, California, where she serves as Chaplain for Combat Logistics Battalion 7. Although currently thriving in her career, Andrea had a challenging beginning.

Born in 1980 in Louisville, Kentucky, Dré experienced a rocky childhood and rough teen years. Things started to look up after she enrolled at La Sierra University, but in 2001 she had to drop out due to financial hardship. Ten years later, her student debt was miraculously paid off by her compassionate employer, and she had the opportunity to return to school in 2011 to pursue a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English: Writing.

Although tuition was taken care of, Dré was experiencing the challenging and lonely realities of homelessness. During three months of her senior year, she was sleeping in her car, alternating from parking lot to parking lot. However, when Dean Robinson and Vice President Bazan were made aware of the situation, they opened up a dorm room for Dré so she could focus on her academics instead of where she would be sleeping at night.

Originally planning to apply for medical school, Dré had a career-altering conversation with Dr. Maury Jackson. He encouraged her to pursue a Master’s degree in Religion, and so she did. Dré felt God’s calling for her to be a chaplain, and that’s when she knew that her passion was to be in the military. Since then, Dré has served as a pastor at Valley Fellowship and Riverside Community SDA churches. In addition, she worked as a student chaplain for the La Sierra University Criminal Justice campuses from 2016 to 2017. She also served as President for the Divinity School Student Forum and Interim President for PRISM, among a plethora of other impressive accomplishments on campus. In 2017, Dré earned her Master of Divinity degree at La Sierra, and in November 2018, she was commissioned as a Lieutenant JG Navy Chaplain in Los Angeles. Dré was recently honored in 2020 as the HMS Richards Divinity School Rising Star.