Current Initiatives

The Arc Advocacy Committee
The Arc's core mission has always been advocacy--working the community leaders at the local, state and national level to create policies that will improve the lives of people with developmental disabilities and their families.  And we've enjoyed great success.  Our efforts help make it possible for people with developmental disabilities to go to school, find jobs and live independently in the community. 

In 2006, The Arc of Spokane increased its capacity for grassroots advocacy by becoming a member of the Spokane Alliance, a broad-based advocacy organization made up primarily of churches and labor unions.  Utilizing the organizing know-how of the Spokane Alliance, The Arc of Spokane has initiated an effort to identify the most criticial needs of people with developmental disabilities and their families in Spokane and resolve them.  Working through The Arc's Advocacy Committee, our grassroots volunteers can influence public policy and create even better opportunities for people with developmental disabilities.  If you'd like to become involved in our advocacy effort, contact Lance Morehouse at (509) 328-6326.       

Hire Ability Day
Initiated by Spokane County Community Services and funded by the state Developmental Disabilities Council in 2004, Hire Ability Day encourages employers to hire people with developmental disabilities. A community-wide coalition of civic leaders, non-profit agencies and businesses sponsor and promote a Hire Ability Day each year.  The Arc is just one if its many sponsors.   

The first Hire Ability Day in 2004 brought over 300 executives, individuals with disabilities, public officials and other community members together at the Davenport Hotel for a sumptuous luncheon where they learned about the benefits of “developmental diversity” in all areas of life, including the workplace.  In the morning before the luncheon, fifteen employers hosted individuals with developmental disabilities at their work sites in an “on-the-job” get-acquainted session.

Event chair Scott Morris, president of Avista Utilities, described how Avista's Investment Recovery program, which is staffed by a group of ten employees with developmental disabilities, has saved Avista shareholders $750,000.  Keynote speaker David Morris, owner of Habitat International, a small manufacturing firm in Chattanooga, Tennessee, explained how his business has thrived against much larger competitors with a dedicated and skillful workforce that includes many employees with developmental disabilities.

Hire Ability Day is an annual event.  Watch our News and Events page for the next date! 

The Save Our Transit Campaign
Public transportation is critical to the lives of people with developmental disabilities, most of whom do not drive.  When Washington voters passed a ballot initiative limiting taxes for public transportaiton in 2004, funding for bus service was slashed as much as 50 percent in some areas of the state. In Spokane, the Spokane Transit Authority announced drastic reductions in bus and paratransit services throughout the county beginning that summer.  Without bus service, many people with developmental disabilities would be unable to get to work, the doctor or anywhere else.

In response to this emergency, The Arc of Spokane's Executive Director, Greg Falk,  and Lance Morehouse, Director of Advocacy and Family Support, launched the Save Our Transit campaign. Comprised of a broad coalition of community leaders, organizations and concerned citizens, the Save Our Transit campaign succeeded in persuading Spokane Transit Authority’s board of directors to put a second proposition before voters asking for a 0.3% increase in the general sales tax, which would increase STA’s funding and avoid the need for service cuts.

The community heard Save Our Transit’s message and agreed. On May 18, 2004, the STA proposition passed with an overwhelming winning 69% of 78,586 votes cast. In an editorial the next morning, the Spokesman-Review said that “The electoral turnaround for a service that most voters don’t directly use is remarkable.”

While the Save Our Transit campaign required countless hours of work and an enormous amount of energy, it was a wonderful opportunity for The Arc of Spokane to fulfill its mission and to advocate for people with developmental disabilities.