L'Arche

L'Arche is an international organization dedicated to the creation and growth of homes, programs, and support networks with people who have intellectual disabilities (or learning disabilities as they are known in the UK). It was founded in 1964 when Jean Vanier, the son of Canadian Governor General Georges Vanier and Pauline Vanier, welcomed two men with disabilities into his home in the town of Trosly-Breuil, France. Today, it is an international movement operating in 40 countries, and on every continent.

Worldwide, L’Arche is organized into regional and national groupings of independent, locally operated agencies which it refers to as “communities." Each L'Arche community normally comprises a number of homes and, in many cases, apartments and day programs as well. As of June 2010, there were 137 L'Arche communities affiliated with the International Federation of L'Arche.
Contents
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* 1 The L'Arche Model
* 2 The Mission of L'Arche
* 3 L'Arche as a "Faith-Based" Organization
* 4 History of L'Arche
* 5 Funding
* 6 Bibliography
* 7 References
* 8 External links
o 8.1 National & Multinational L'Arche Websites
o 8.2 Regional L'Arche Websites
o 8.3 L'Arche Community Websites
o 8.4 Other L'Arche-related Websites

[edit] The L'Arche Model

L’Arche homes and programs operate according to a not-for-profit “community model” which is distinct from "client-centered", medical, or social service models of care. At L’Arche,

* people with disabilities, and those who assist them, live together in homes and apartments, sharing life with one another and building community as responsible adults;
* everyone is believed to have the capacity to grow and to mature into adulthood, and to make a contribution to society, regardless of the physical or intellectual limitations with which they may be living; and
* the important goals of achieving personal growth and maturing socially as an adult are things which are understood to be nurtured most effectively within the context of a community whose policies and practices support and promote, among other things:

* the development of long-term, mutual, interdependent relationships;
* the maintenance of a stable, life-giving home environment;
* the training and ongoing formation of those who provide assistance to community members with disabilities; and
* cooperation with outside professional care providers.

[edit] The Mission of L'Arche

The mission of L'Arche, as defined by L'Arche International, is

* to make known the gifts of people with intellectual disabilities (or learning disabilities as they are known in the UK),
* to foster the development of communities that respond to members' changing needs, and
* to engage with local cultures while working toward a more human society.


In pursuit of this mission, all L'Arche communities strive

* to create small faith-based communities of friendship and mutuality between people who have disabilities and others;
* to develop life-long support systems with people who have disabilities, especially with those who are extremely vulnerable due to old age and/or multiple disabilities; and
* to highlight the unique capacity of persons with disabilities to enrich relationships and to build communities where the values of compassion, inclusion and diversity are upheld and lived by each person.

[edit] L'Arche as a "Faith-Based" Organization

As a faith-based organization, L'Arche maintains, promotes, and strives to act upon the following principles:

* that whatever their strengths or their limitations, people are all bound together in a common humanity;
* that everyone has the same dignity and the same rights, including the right to life, to a home, to work, to friendship, and to a spiritual life;
* that a truly just and compassionate society is one which welcomes its most vulnerable citizens, and which provides them with opportunities to contribute meaningfully to the communities in which they live; and
* that systems of belief--be they secular or religious--make the world a better place only when they promote the dignity of all human beings, inspiring us to be open to people of different intellectual capacities, social origins, races, religions, and cultures.

For more information about the vision and mission of L'Arche, see the "Charter of L'Arche”
[edit] History of L'Arche

In 1964, through his friendship with Dominican priest Father Thomas Philippe, Vanier became aware of the plight of thousands of people institutionalized with developmental disabilities. Vanier felt led by God to invite two men, Raphael Simi and Philippe Seux, to leave the institutions where they resided and share their lives with him in a household in Trosly-Breuil, France. He named their home "L’Arche", which is French for "The Ark", as in Noah’s Ark.

The first community in Canada was founded in 1969 in Richmond Hill near Toronto, Ontario. The first community in the UK was founded in 1973 in Barfrestone, Kent through the efforts of Vanier's sister, Therese. L'Arche Kent has since grown into a thriving L'Arche community, the first in the UK.

Although L'Arche communities are found in many different cultures and reflect the ethnic and religious composition of the locales in which they exist, they share a common philosophy and approach. People with developmental disabilities and those who assist them live and work together to create homes. The L'Arche Charter says, "In a divided world, L'Arche wants to be a sign of hope. Its communities, founded on covenant relationships between people of differing intellectual capacity, social origin, religion and culture, seek to be signs of unity, faithfulness and reconciliation."[1]The charter further outlines the objectives, the principles and the identity of L'Arche. All the Communities of the International Federation of L'Arche are committed to living these principles.

In March, 2008, the international councils of L'Arche and another organization for disabled people founded by Vanier, Faith and Light, met for the first time in joint meeting in Lviv, Ukraine. The international council of L’Arche was represented by 30 people from 14 countries, and the international council of Faith and Light was represented by 19 people from 17 countries, including France, Belgium, Switzerland, Great Britain, Ireland, India, Canada, USA, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Brazil, Uganda, New Zealand, Philippines, and Italy.
[edit] Funding

L'Arche communities are funded differently, depending on where they are located. In Canada, the UK, France and other developed countries, they are funded by the relevant governing body. In less economically developed countries they rely more on local donations and on donations from other L'Arche communities.
[edit] Bibliography

Challenge of L'Arche, 1982, Jean Vanier

A Blessed Weakness: Spirit of Jean Vanier and L'Arche, 1989, Michael Downey

Arc for the Poor: The Story of L'Arche (L'Arche Collection), 1995, Jean Vanier

Encounter with Mystery: Reflections on L'Arche and Living with Disability, 1997, Darton,Longman & Todd Ltd, editor Frances Young

The Miracle the Message the Story: Jean Vanier and L'Arche, 2006, Kathryn Spink

Enough Room for Joy: The Early Days of Jean Vanier's L'Arche, 2007, Jean Vanier and Bill, S.J. Clarke

Community and Growth, reprinted 1989, Jean Vanier, Paulist Press

Walking on a Rolling Deck: Life on the Ark, 2008, Kathleen C. Berken (Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota)