Prestonwood was founded on February 6, 1977, in North Dallas, as a mission church of Northway Baptist Church. Under founding pastor Bill Weber, the new church grew considerably, and in 1979 moved into a permanent facility near the corner of Arapaho and Hillcrest Roads in Dallas.
By 1988, Prestonwoo...
Prestonwood was founded on February 6, 1977, in North Dallas, as a mission church of Northway Baptist Church. Under founding pastor Bill Weber, the new church grew considerably, and in 1979 moved into a permanent facility near the corner of Arapaho and Hillcrest Roads in Dallas.
By 1988, Prestonwood had grown to 11,000 members; that same year, Pastor Weber confessed to an extramarital affair and stepped down from the pulpit. Behind the scenes, however, Weber actively sought to regain his position as pastor; when he was unable to do so he convinced several of the church's wealthier members—including cosmetics magnate Mary Kay Ash—to support a new church he was starting.
In 1989, Dr. Jack Graham replaced Weber as senior pastor of Prestonwood, by this time considered a "megachurch" because of its rapid expansion into one of the fastest-growing churches in the United States.[3] By the mid-1990s, it became apparent that the church had outgrown its north Dallas home; the facility was landlocked with no ability to expand. In 1994, the church's leadership began plans for a 7,000-seat worship center in Plano. Services were first held on May 2, 1999. The church continued to expand its facilities throughout the next decade. Soon after the opening of the new worship center, the first phase of the new Prestonwood Sports and Fitness Center was completed. In August 2003, the church completed the second phase of the building, which featured a new chapel, a 100-foot-tall (30m) "Faith Tower" topped by a cross, a student ministry area, restaurant and commons, additional space for Bible fellowship and administrative offices. Two years later, the Prestonwood Christian Academy Upper School opened on the west side of the church campus
The church reached the 46,000-member mark in 2019, with regular attendance at worship services averaging around 17,000
