BLUFFTON, S.C. (WSAV) — Bluffton Self Help opened the doors to Beaufort County’s first community education and resource center Wednesday.

The center will provide Lowcountry residents access to business services and computers free of charge.

“We have a great deal of underemployed folks in our area, meaning that either their work is seasonal, or they’re not quite making ends meet,” said Bluffton Self Help Executive Director Kimberly Hall, “Our goal is to elevate that work so that they can work at a livable wage.”

Bluffton Self Help already provides resources for low-income residents in the community such as food and clothing, but Hall says this resource center is the next step to helping them provide for themselves and their families.

“Ninety percent of job applications are done online, and so, a lot of people may not have access to a computer or not be able to navigate a computer, will now have somebody to sit with, to help them access applications and job boards, and maybe even educational tools online that they need to help them within their job,” Hall said.

“We have a very wealthy county, with a lot of people in need, if you can picture that,” Bluffton Mayor Lisa Sulka said.

When it comes to Bluffton Self Help, Sulka said, “They’re just always thinking… they’re in the trenches, so they see the people who come in and they see the needs so they react on those needs.”

In November, the Community Foundation of the Lowcountry gave the organization a grant of nearly $90 grand to create the community education and resource center.

“Because of my mother, we have big shoes to fill,” said Constance Martin-Witter, daughter of Bluffton Self Help’s founder Ida Martin, “We are our neighbors, and we are to take care of our brothers and sisters,” she said.

The resource center is located at 39 Sheridan Park Circle, Unit 9 in Bluffton. It is open the public Monday through Thursday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Fridays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.