Written by April Duncan, Elma High School Intern
Fitting in can be difficult for anyone. For people living with disabilities, it can be even harder.
The Arc of Grays Harbor, the local chapter of national non-profit The Arc, aims to promote community inclusion for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities locally through awareness, education and job placement. Through a handful of powerful community partnerships and outreach efforts, The Arc of Grays Harbor is able to advocate for local disabled people while helping them find jobs and learn to take care of themselves.
The Arc of Grays Harbor believes that advocacy should start early, which is why their Parent-to-Parent program provides support by helping teach new parents of disabled children how to better understand developmental and intellectual disabilities. New parents looking for support are matched with an Arc of Grays Harbor mentor (usually someone with experience parenting a child with a disability) who can provide the parents with positive solutions to their challenging questions.
“I just started to work with the [program] and The Arc has helped me learn of things that are happening in Grays Harbor and services that they offer,” says Marisol Guzman.
In addition to early advocacy, The Arc of Grays Harbor promotes ongoing advocacy with the help of their local partner People First of Grays Harbor, a local self-advocacy group with a similar mission. People First of Grays Harbor is a local chapter of People First of Washington that strives to see that people with disabilities are viewed as people first. By working together, The Arc of Grays Harbor and People First of Grays Harbor provide education, awareness, inclusion, and acceptance for everyone.
Another way The Arc of Grays Harbor provides awareness and empowers people with disabilities is through their many community outreach projects. One example of this is The Arc of Grays Harbor’s community garden. Modeled after GRuB in Olympia, the community garden provides opportunities for people with disabilities to be a part of a community-wide project that promotes healthy, eco-friendly gardening and food production practices. The Arc of Grays Harbor calls this “intentional inclusion,” and models all of its outreach efforts on this philosophy.
Another example of this kind of outreach is Sprout Films, a collection of fun and inspirational films featuring people with disabilities. With a mission of “making the invisible people visible,” Sprout Films will be featured on May 16 at 7:00 p.m. at the 7th Street Theatre in Hoquiam. The event is sponsored by People First of Grays Harbor and The Arc of Grays Harbor. More information about the event and how to buy tickets can be found online.
How can you be a part of it?
Like many non-profits, funding for The Arc of Grays Harbor is lean. The Arc of Grays Harbor currently runs on only 20 percent of its previous budget. Luckily, there are many ways the community can help.
Donations of clothing, money and cars are always welcome, but the best way to be a part is to be accepting of people with different abilities. Community inclusion is vitally important. Positive interaction between people with disabilities and the community will always be The Arc of Grays Harbor’s primary mission.
Another way to help is by becoming a member. Individual memberships are $10 per year and family memberships are $30 per year. The Arc is also currently looking for volunteers. Check out The Arc of Grays Harbor’s website to find out more.
For more information or to make a donation, visit the The Arc of Grays Harbor online, call The Arc at 360-537-7000, or visit The Arc in person at 523 West 1st Street, Suite #1 in Aberdeen. Office hours are 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday.
All photos courtesy of The Arc of Grays Harbor.
