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Happy 2023 from The Arc Lane County!
We hope your 2023 is off to a wonderful start! The start of a New Year is a terrific opportunity to reflect on the preceding year, and hit the "refresh" button for the year ahead.
The Arc Lane County is proud of the support and services it has provided to more than 600 people with disabilities and their families to live full and meaningful lives.
We thank our board of directors, employees, community partners, volunteers and donors for their support in the important work we do in the community, and we look forward to charting a path to a healthy, happy and robust 2023 with their continued support.
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THE ARC LANE COUNTY 2022 SUCCESSES | |
Arc Park, Comcast Amphitheater Open | | |
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The first phase of the Arc Park officially opened in July 2022 with The Arc's biennial carnival.
The first phase of the park includes the Comcast Amphitheater and community gathering space, the accessible restrooms and the amazing sensory wall.
The Arc also received a grant to hire a recreation coordinator who hosted fun activities for children and families inside the park this summer.
The Arc hosts regular tours for people to see the new park. Contact Jo Ann to schedule a time to see this new community gem.
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SAIL Residents Donate to Arc Park | |
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Fundraising for the second phase of the Arc Park is now underway. The second phase of the park includes a toddler play area, a picnic pavilion, and an accessible sand and water play area.
The Arc received nearly $30K in donations from its annual holiday appeal, which included a donation from self-advocates involved with the former Supporting Access to Independent Living (SAIL) nonprofit.
Read Former SAIL Members Give Generously to Arc Park to hear why Caroline and Eric were happy to contribute to this unique play space.
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CARES Food Pantry Helps Uplift People
Facing Food Insecurity
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As the need for food and other resources continues to rise in Lane County, The CARES Food Pantry supplied more than 9,000 food boxes to families in 2022, a nearly 50% increase over 2021.
In addition, the CARES team provided more than 1,000 emergency food box deliveries to people who could not access the pantry directly, a 65% increase from the previous year.
Thanks to the surplus from a Franz Bakery Foundation grant, the CARES Food Pantry recently created a birthday club for children whose parents are receiving food box support to receive a birthday gift.
The CARES Food Pantry is an ongoing collaboration between The Arc Lane County, FODD for Lane County, Escudo Latino and United Way.
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Stepping Out Helps Adults Make Friends,
Recreate in the Community
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After overcoming obstacles created by the pandemic and then the nationwide staffing shortage, The Arc's Stepping Out program is back to operating at full speed to support adults with disabilities in making friends and recreating within the community.
Stepping Out currently supports 40 individuals, and The Arc is actively recruiting and hiring staff to serve future clients on the Stepping Out waitlist.
Stepping Out participated in and hosted several fun, community events, including the inaugural Springfield Block Party, a Halloween party and a Christmas photos with Santa event.
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The Arc Helps Adults with Disabilities Land
Meaningful Employment
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The Arc's EmployAbility and Employment Path teams continue to help adults with disabilities find volunteer opportunities and secure jobs where they can utilize their strengths and give back to the community.
The Arc helped individuals secure jobs at several different locations in 2022, including BRING Recycling, P.F. Chang’s, Safeway, Albertsons, Holiday Inn, Home Depot, Fred Meyer and A Family for Every Child.
In addition to securing new jobs for clients, the EmployAbility team also had seven successful workplace retentions, meaning the individuals who secured jobs are still working with those employers a year later.
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JumpStart Preschool Awarded Preschool Promise Grant | |
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The Arc's JumpStart Preschool was awarded a Preschool Promise grant, allowing JumpStart to provide early learning to young children who may not otherwise be able to attend a preschool program.
Preschool Promise provides free, high-quality preschool to Oregon families who are living at or below 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level in Oregon.
JumpStart Preschool was awarded the Preschool Promise grant through the Early Childhood Hub of Lane County, and is now helping 16 children with their learning thanks to the grant. There are currently two Preschool Promise openings at JumpStart. Contact Annie for more information.
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Families Connected, Familias en Conexión Engage in Targeted Outreach to Help Families in Rural Communities | | |
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Despite the perfect storm created by COVID, RSV and the flu, both the Families Connected and Familias en Conexión family networks continue to grow, with more parents seeking peer support and access to resources to help them as they raise children with disabilities.
With the help of a grant from the Oregon Community Foundation, Families Connected and Familias en Conexión are working diligently to reach parents in underserved communities, such as Oakridge, Cottage Grove and Florence, with the goal of helping parents chart a course for a positive and possible future for their children.
Read Oregon Community Foundation helps in closing the "opportunity gap" granting $2M to 30 Oregon-based nonprofits.
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The Arc Helps Greater Community Build Immunity
Against COVID
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In partnership with the Oregon Health Authority, The Arc helped vaccinate more than 1,800 Lane County residents against COVID in 2022 by hosting 18 sensory-friendly vaccine clinics.
The Arc will continue to host vaccine clinics through March 2023, especially in more rural areas of the county where there is more vaccine hesitancy.
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Community Connectors Program Helps Families Hire
Direct Support Professionals
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Similar to the other programs at The Arc, the Community Connectors program is dedicated to making life a bit easier for parents who are raising children with disabilities.
The Community Connectors program recruits and hires direct support professionals (DSPs) and then matches them with children, youth and adults who experience disabilities.
Despite the nationwide staffing shortages, the Community Connectors program hired reliable and professional DSPs and helped match them to 53 individuals in need of support.
In fact, the Community Connectors Program helped single father Robert find the right DSPs to support his son, Taison, which helped him keep his job. Read Robert and Taison's story here.
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New On Track Program Helps People Secure Housing | |
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With funding support from the Oregon Health Authority and the American Rescue Plan Act, The Arc Lane County launched a new program in 2002 called, On Track, to provide financial services, rent/utility assistance and housing assistance to people who experience intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The On Track program helped 39 individuals avoid eviction or secure housing last year. Staff also helped a mother get repairs completed on her apartment that prevented both she and her child from being evicted. Read more about The Arc's On Track Program here.
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The Arc Launches Campaign to Combat Bullying | | |
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With help from a grant from the Oregon Health Authority, The Arc is launching a campaign to address bullying against students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
In October, The Arc celebrated Unity Day by donning orange Unity Day shirts to send a visible message that no child should ever experience bullying.
This year, The Arc will partner with the Eugene 4J School District to form neurodiversity alliance groups to help foster more inclusive and accepting school campuses and encourage genuine friendships.
The Arc is also collaborating with other local agencies on a Strength in Neurodiversity campaign to shatter preconceived notions related to disability and foster greater community awareness and acceptance.
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The Arc Spreads Cheer to Greater Community
Throughout 2022
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The Arc enjoys giving back to the community that it benefits from greatly. In 2022, The Arc hosted several events for the broader community to enjoy, including its biennial carnival, its second annual Halloween drive thru costume parade and its annual Sensory Santa holiday event.
The Arc also partnered with local businesses and faith-based organizations to host its Tree of Joy holiday gift giving campaign. Thanks to the outpouring of support from so many generous people, The Arc was able to provide a holiday meal and toys to many families experiencing financial hardship.
Read The Arc of Lane County gives away toys for struggling families for holidays.
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