Avery Association For Exceptional Citizens, Inc.

Avery Association for Exceptional Citizens, Inc. (AAEC) is a private nonprofit that provides services for adults with developmental disabilities in and around Avery County, NC. We have been in operation for 33 years. Our Adult Developmental Vocational Program (ADVP) is known as Yellow Mountain Enterprises and is located at 255 Estatoa Street across from Avery True Value Hardware Store one block down. The Yellow Mountain Thrift Store is located at this site; it is open to the public weekdays from 10 AM until 3 PM and is operated by our clients.

Yellow Mountain Enterprises: Services

AAEC provide transportation for all clients who need it and offers compensatory education, life skills, vocational skills and supported employment opportunities. All of our clients earn paychecks through our on-site vocational programs and many also work part-time in locations such as local restaurants, grocery stores, and at the YMCA.

Our vocational programs include:

• Trophies and plaque production, which is our largest work program. Call to place your order…our prices are so good, we get orders as far away as Charlotte.
• Yard Crews, which maintain lawns and provide light landscaping services

• Christmas Bow Production, where large quantities of handmade bows are created for local tree growers
• Tinmen and crafts, where clients produce handmade “Tinmen” (think “Wizard of Oz”) from discarded cans and beautiful wreaths from pinecones, as well as other seasonal items
• Greenhouse and Garden plant and vegetable sales, where clients learn to cultivate and produce their own food and flowers, and sell the excess to the public
• Yellow Mountain Thrift Store, where clients learn to sort donations, launder, size, and hang clothes, display items for sale, serve customers, and count change.
• Contracts are available by arrangement for stuffing envelopes, stamping mail, shredding documents, bagging small parts, cleaning out storage sheds, etc. We will try to work out a way to do just about anything your home or business needs

Call us- our folks LOVE to work and we are extremely reasonably priced!!

Avery County Group Home- Residential Services

Avery Association for Exceptional Citizens, Inc. also runs the Avery County Group Home, which serves 6 full-time residents with 24 hour, 365 days a year supervised care. All of our residents attend Yellow Mountain Enterprises and two have outside employment as well. We provide recreational activities, access to social events and worship services, transportation, and personal care services as needed.