Lake Norman man embarks on a global mission to help children and adults most in need
After a career selling cars at a Maryland Lexus dealership, Edward Jackson could chill the rest of his life at his and his wife, Jayne’s, home on Lake Norman’s Brawley School Road peninsula in Mooresville.
Instead, Jackson is busier than ever volunteering to help others, both locally and 12,000 miles away in Africa.
And Jackson, 63, who became a grandfather this month, has done it for quite sometime now.
For at least 22 years, he has educated people about substance abuse, including maximum security inmates at Jessup Correctional Institution in Maryland, he said.
Once a month, he visits inmates at the Mecklenburg County jail through the sheriff’s alcohol and drug division, he said.
“Many years ago, I also had a substance abuse problem,” Jackson said. “And by the grace of God, I was able to get some help. And now I want to give back, to help those who’ve helped me.”
Spreading God’s love
In October, Jackson flew to Liberia, on the west coast of Africa.
He visited through the international G20 men’s ministry started by his good friend, the Rev. Jeff Harper, a nuclear engineer from the Baltimore area.
“I visited cemeteries where folks are actually living because of the shelter they provide in the tombs,” Jackson said. “And they also take out the bones of the deceased, and they crush them up, and it’s called ‘crush.’
“They learned to smoke it because of the amount of formaldehyde in the bones,” he said. “That is an addiction issue.”
Jackson also spoke at churches and rehab centers in Liberia. His image appeared on a postage stamp illustration in literature promoting a substance-abuse panel discussion in which he participated.
His goal is to visit all 54 countries in Africa through G20, he said, “to bring about changes in the way that people live and try to change the lives of men.
“They’ve got a very serious substance abuse problem there,” Jackson said. “So when I went over, I was able to take a lot of literature and materials that helped them understand substance abuse and to help them overcome their substance abuse with the help of God.”
Jackson also took a mission trip to Kenya in 2024.
He spoke with men in a 12-step recovery program and was a guest speaker on overcoming addiction.
How do you overcome it?
“A lot of help and prayer through God and a great community, a lot of fellowship,” he said.
Helping orphaned children in Uganda
Jackson worships at Williamson’s Chapel United Methodist Church in Mooresville.
The church has supported Acres of Hope, a nonprofit, Christ-centered community for orphaned and other vulnerable children in Nebbi, Uganda.
The church has supported Acres of Hope since Ugandan Pastor Geoffrey Odongo opened the ministry in 2011 at a mango tree on a remote acre he bought. Nothing else was there, just the tree, Williamson’s Chapel member Michelle Campbell said.
Williamson’s Chapel members have taken many mission trips to Acres of Hope. They sponsor children and have contributed financially to build its classrooms and housing.
“It’s a life-changing experience to see what God is doing in a completely different part of the world,” Campbell said.
Jackson joined two Williamson’s Chapel trips to Acres of Hope and is helping lead another one from Oct. 19 to Oct. 27.
He also belongs to the Top of the Lake-Mooresville Rotary Club, which he inspired to donate $10,000 to Acres of Hope this year. The money will buy science equipment for its secondary school that’s under construction. The school opened in temporary quarters last year.
Acres of Hope educates and provides housing, food, health care and other services to about 250 sponsored children and 250 whose parents pay for them to attend, Campbell said.
“It’s just been a miracle to see what’s happened,” club and church member Stephanie Richart said.
Jackson said he was hooked the moment he met the gaggle of kids in the school yard.
“When I went over there, it pulled at my heart string,” he said. “I love seeing what Pastor Geoffrey is doing. I love being a part of that.
“This church has allowed me to get involved, and I’ll be forever grateful to Williamson’s Chapel for offering this type of opportunity for me,” Jackson said.
Join mission trip
Acres of Hope International, a nonprofit formed by Williamson’s Chapel UMC members to support the Ugandan ministry, welcomes people to join its October mission trip.
Details: Michelle Campbell, 704-928-5400; michelle@aohi.org.
This story was originally published December 29, 2024 at 5:00 AM.