Literacy SC wrapped up 2025 by bringing together over 75 guests at Satterlee Hall in the historic Trinity Episcopal Cathedral for its first annual Read Aloud Brunch. The event, which drew staff, volunteers, and friends from across multiple counties, served as the backdrop for the launch of “Loretta’s Light”—the inaugural Loretta Beckner Legacy Award.
Loretta Beckner, co-founder of Literacy SC’s Turning Pages Aiken branch, passed away in November 2025 after a lengthy battle with cancer. This annual honor celebrates an outstanding tutor-learner pair who went above and beyond what they were asked. The first recipients of the award were tutor Sandy Jowers and her two learners, Ethan and Chandler, who are both in their 20s.
Jowers brings over 35 years of South Carolina education experience to her role as a volunteer tutor. Her career began in 1979 as a French and language arts teacher at Olanta High School before spending a decade teaching English at Swansea High. She later served as a teacher and administrative assistant at Airport High throughout the 1990s. In 1998, Jowers transitioned into leadership within Lexington District 1, serving as assistant principal at Pelion High and eventually being promoted to principal of Pelion Middle School in 2006. Today, she applies that lifetime of classroom and administrative expertise to the one-on-one success of adult learners in the Turning Pages program.
Chandler entered the program struggling to read sight words. After 48 sessions with Jowers, he secured his driver’s permit for the first time and now builds robots using simplified instructions. Ethan arrived with deep-seated educational trauma that had caused him to stop reading entirely. After 24 sessions with Jowers, he gained the confidence to enroll in community college.
“The progress Ethan and Chandler have made here in Richland County is the exact reason Loretta Beckner started the Aiken Branch,” said Lisa Cole, CEO of Literacy SC. “She believed that reading is a foundational right. By celebrating Sandy and her learners, we ensure Loretta’s Light continues to change the trajectory of lives right here in our community.”
Literacy SC provides in-person instruction across Richland, Lexington, Aiken, and Saluda counties via 27 partner sites. The organization also offers free virtual programs, such as Reading Begins Here, available to families statewide. Their spring semester runs January 19 to May 23.
