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Arc History

The Arc of Blackstone Valley History

The Arc of Blackstone Valley was founded in 1955 and built by parents who wanted not only services, but also choices for their sons and daughters.

At that time all that was available was to either keep their son or daughter at home with no help or to place their child into an institution.

These parents chose to keep their child at home. Not an easy decision because at that time, many doctors and other professionals often told parents to put their child in an institution and forget about them.

Today, it is difficult to imagine having to make a decision such as that and having nowhere to turn for help.

These families wanted to have their children be part of their community

to go to local schools with their neighbors
to participate in community employment as well as recreational activities, and finally
to have a place where they could learn, be safe and happy when the parents were no longer there to care for them.

This vision and dream of those parents is still the mission of The Arc of Blackstone Valley today.

At first the parents held suppers, cake sales and solicited donations to provide basic services for their children and others.

A pre-school program was developed at the Cottage Street Baptist Church, Pawtucket, and recreation programs were initiated.

As their children grew, vocational and residential programs were established to meet their ever-changing needs.

The parents were successful in advocating for changes that enabled their children to be included in the public school systems; to live in housing of their choice and ability; to earn a paycheck working in productive and meaningful jobs; and to participate in the everyday life of their community.

In short, to recognize people for the abilities that we all have; instead of our disabilities.

Today, our Chapter continues to operate as a private, non-profit organization.

We provide a comprehensive range of residential, employment, recreational, educational and therapeutic services to address the individual needs and interests of more than 400 children and adults.

The primary service areas for our Chapter are the communities of Pawtucket, East Providence, Central Falls, Lincoln and Cumberland.

We are one of nine local chapters of RI Arc and a member of The Arc, our national organization.

A dedicated volunteer Board of Directors, all of whom are elected by the general membership, governs the Chapter.

Our Board is comprised of parents, self advocates, business and community leaders from throughout our communities.

Our volunteers are committed to ensuring that people with developmental disabilities have the opportunity to choose where and how they live, learn, work and play. "I wanna ride a horse..."