Our Story
Our Story
Our story began more than ten years ago, when Emma was in high school. Emma only loved to go to school. In high school she had terrible social skills. She was polite and kind, but not being verbal she didn’t know how to communicate, socialize and make friends. When her ARD meeting came around to discuss her last year in high school at age 22, Mom was in a quandary. What would she do with Emma all day long? She had visited other day programs and was not impressed with their lack of activity. When she voiced her opinion on continued care and leading a productive life, the ARD committee told her to open her own program.
That led to a momentum that would eventually become Emma’s Education Center. On April 7, 2014, a Certificate of Formation was created and there was a six member Board to help with the establishment of the program. The Board at that time, however, had small visions and seeds of doubt, and the “Center” went dormant until May of 2015.
On May 15, 2015, Emma’s longtime care provider before and after school, Carol Willis Pierce, had passed away. She spent nearly 6 months in ICU. During that time, Emma was in a dayhab program after school and Mom wasn’t too impressed. Carol’s death brought a vision that could not be squashed. Carol loved special needs and her legacy and commitment of caring for children and Emma ignited a passion that Emma’s Mom didn’t know she had.
With a new Board of Directors and constant prayer, Emma’s Mom received funds from the sale of her mom and dad’s home in California. Though it was split six ways, Miss Q had enough money to find a location and open. With faith over fear, Miss Q quit her job and Emma’s Education Center opened its doors in a strip mall on Northwest Highway in Garland on August 24, 2015.
We had a lot of dreams back then—to be the largest and best program out there. No one was doing what we were doing. We were TEACHING the students—it was the first time for many of them aside from the red tape of the school system. We were taking them on outings that others hadn’t heard of. We were holding Caregiver’s Night Out quarterly to give caregivers a break. We were providing meals and snacks. Miss Q figured if she had to make lunch for Emma, a trained chef, she might as well make lunch for everyone. Especially after seeing what some parents sent in the students’ lunches.
In 2017, we had our first camp at the Springhill Retreat Center in Richardson. That also ignited a passion among our students to do something different. Most of the students ha never been in a camp setting. Camps were spoken about months after the camp was held. Later that year, we created Camp EEC.
In 2018, with the help of JRQ Ranch LLC, we integrated the Horse Project for our students. JRQ Ranch is a therapy related organization for women who have survived childhood sexual abuse. The therapy is done with one to one care of a rescue horse. Some of those horses have been beaten, starved, manipulated and found a forever home at the stables in Garland. JRQ Ranch worked intensely with the horses and donkeys to make them people friendly. They were able to trust again. And it was just in time for our students, who needed something to care for.
2020 hit the industry hard, but because of its size, EEC remained OPEN for those who didn’t want to sit at home and self quarantine. With constant sanitizing and keeping distance, our group remained strong.
In 2021 we moved into a private home in South Garland. This was a hit with our parents and caregivers as the students would now be learning in a home setting. This is a method that our students can transfer to their own home with what they are learning. Cooking, cleaning, hygiene and simple academics are just a few of the features we are able to do in this setting.
In 2022, Camp EEC was officially reborn. Miss Q’s friends, the Kilgores, had opened up their own retreat Center for the military, camps and bed and breakfasts in East Texas. Our students have been going twice a year since that time.
2025 brings our 10th anniversary. We didn’t get here overnight. Much hard work and continual prayer brought us here. We believe that God ordained our little Center and keeps a watchful eye moving forward. We are 10 years strong and believe that there are only good things for the future of Emma’s Education Center.
