Some members of a local not-for-profit foundation took a recent educational trip to Jacksonville, Florida, to visit The Arc, a manicured small village that serves and advocates for individuals with intellectual and developmental differences. By living independently in a supportive environment these individuals can achieve their full potential and participate in community life.
The Arc’s vision in accordance to its mission allows individuals of all abilities to enrich their communities and have quality options on how they live, learn, work, and play.
The Arc Jacksonville is located in suburban Jacksonville.
The local delegation from Aruba was impressed by the planned community with central services, and thought to itself, why not in Aruba.
The visit will perhaps inspire collaboration with other local foundations, and as a first step it would be important to obtain data, how many of the island’s residents would qualify to become members of the community, live on their own independently, and reach their full potential, working and enjoying life.
As I told you at the beginning of the blog, we have to dream big.
Then start small.
A great number of foundations on the island focus on helping people with differences, but they all operate separately. Perhaps it is time to strategically pool resources and hands.
The Arc Jacksonville sustains itself by collecting rental fees and support service fees, food and beverage sales, in addition to donations and fundraising events, it maintain a village, with 97 rental units and 121 residents, and there is a waiting list of between 2-6 years.
The village is clustered around community center, with a staffed front desk/reception area, game and fitness rooms, a theater and art studio, activity and meeting rooms with a computer lab and laundry room, dining hall and snack bar, a pool and a recreation area.
During the day, the village is staffed by professionals, and in the evenings, it is gated, closed off and guarded by security personnel and one overnight staffer.
Resident candidates are screened, and their ability to live independently assessed. The Arc caps personal income not to exceed a certain amount, allowing lower income individuals to also apply and be accepted.
At the ARC Independent living is fostered and encouraged. And private pay support service are available for residents, to help them thrive, mentally, and professionally.
About 75% of The Arc’s residents are employed, and the average age range of residents starts at around 30, into the 70’s.
The village has been operating since 2016 and was built at the cost of US$11 million, at the time.
When we’re done building the Arc Aruba, we can devote some time to building an elderly village for seniors wanting to live independently within a community.
Aruba’s government has many abandoned buildings, perhaps after obtaining the correct data we could start soliciting a property, then figure out how many units we would want to start with.
Money? My friends tell me money is never a problem, when priorities are set straight,
