Support for Low Income Families
Mission
The mission of the Antioch Educational Center is to assist members of low income families transition into a better quality of life by offering programs and services in the areas of health and wellness, academics, and job preparedness.
AEC serves more of Jasper County residents than any other nonprofit organization. AEC literally serves: over 1200 clients each week including 600 through its Backpack Buddies Program, 215 through its Feeding our Youth Program (a daily program that feeds 215 students each day prior to them going home), 60 high school juniors and seniors through its Summer Youth Work Program, and over 300 weekly through its three food pantries in Jasper County and one in Estill.
These numbers do not include the hundreds that receive clothing each month through AEC’s clothes closet and over 300 children served annually with toys and several hundred served with school supplies and or school uniforms. AEC is dedicated to serving the immediate needs of low income families in Jasper County.
In 2015, Jackie O’Bannon led her Board in acquiring AEC’s very own 2400 square foot facility in the heart of downtown Ridgeland. She later expanded that effort to include an additional two lots that now encompasses an entire block in downtown Ridgeland. Through her leadership role, Jackie has led her Board of Directors to be able to become debt free within five years of kicking off this effort. She now stands posed to lead her Board in expanding AEC’s 2400 square ft. facility to 5500 square feet. The groundbreaking for this expansion starts in September of 2020.
In addition to her son Lilran, who still resides in Tacoma, Washington, she is the proud grandmother of two beautiful grandsons who are ages five and eight years old. She is an avid reader who also enjoys backgammon and chess. She also loves to travel, especially cruise.
Jackie is a dedicated and committed part of the Lowcountry region. Her motto is only by working together can we improve the quality of life for our low income neighbors and thereby make our community a much better place for all of us to work, play, and live.
Her future plans are to remain in South Carolina another five years (2025) when she then intends to return to the Seattle community. “I feel I still have so very much to give the Lowcountry region. I look forward to expanding educational/training opportunities for the region’s low income residents, I strongly feel that training and education are key to improving the quality of life for our neighbors. I also believe that by improving the lives of our low income neighbors we in return improve the quality of life for all who live, work and play in the Lowcountry.,” stated O’Bannon.