By Jamie Helgeson

The Arc Mower County

The Arc of the United States released the Family & Individual Needs for Disability Supports (FINDS) Community Report 2017. The intent of this one-of-a-kind survey, conducted by The University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration in collaboration with The Arc, is to understand the experiences of families who provide support to a family member with intellectual or other developmental disabilities (I/DD). This is the second FINDS Report that The Arc has released; the first was conducted in 2010, and released in 2011.

An estimated 7.3 million people with I/DD live in the United States, with the majority living in their family home and receiving support from a family member. The report includes survey responses from over 3,000 caregivers and provides information on the economic implications, logistical challenges, and major gaps that exist in caregiving infrastructure.

The FINDS Survey revealed that, despite the progress that many states have made to increase availability of resources and public funding to provide support for caregivers and individuals with disabilities, many critical challenges remain. The study revealed that:

•80 percent of individuals with I/DD live with a caregiver who is their family member. Alternatively, access to affordable and accessible housing outside a family home, in a setting with adequate supports, remains a challenge for people with I/DD.

•Most caregivers (54 percent) reported that they did not have a plan for the future.  Caregivers share a long list of concerns about what will happen to their loved one with disabilities when they are no longer able to support them.  Planning ahead can help guide a person with I/DD to lead a good life as independently as possible. A plan is important throughout all stages of life and especially in the future after the parent or caregiver is no longer able to provide support.

•50 percent of individuals with I/DD leave high school without a high school diploma. This is concerning because having a high school diploma is crucial to being considered in a competitive job market.

•Only a minority of individuals with I/DD are fortunate enough to be employed, and on average they work only 26 hours per two-week period.  There is a lack in diversity of the type of work being done; sixty percent (60 pecent) of those employed work in retail, janitorial, landscaping, or food service jobs.

•More than 3 out of 4 survey respondents described that since becoming a caregiver they are more aware of policy issues and more involved in advocacy, including calling their legislators.  Ninety-five percent say that they vote, much higher than is typical for the voting age population as a whole.

•The FINDS Survey results highlight the challenges faced by caregivers in our nation. With respondents reporting an average of 57 hours of support provided to their loved one each week, 95 percent of caregivers reported being stressed and nearly 50 percent reporting being very or extremely stressed. This affects the ability of caregivers to meet their own personal needs, balance family responsibilities, and fulfill professional obligations. Almost all survey respondents who were employed reported that caregiving had a negative impact on their work, whether it was cutting back their hours, turning down promotions, taking a leave of absence, or giving up work entirely to meet the needs of their loved one.

To read more, please visit www.thearc.org/FINDS.

A Foot for The Arc summer fundraising campaign

Did you know that if you put 13 quarters side by side they would equal 1 foot? And how many of you remember from your school days that there are 5,280 feet in a mile?

These two trivia facts are the focus of a summer campaign that we are launching for The Arc of Mower County, called “A Mile Of Quarters!” For every $3.25 you can purchase a foot in our campaign or 10 feet for $32.50, 15 feet for $48.75, 30 feet for $100 and 50 feet will cost you $162.50. We’re sure you are starting to see the pattern here. You can purchase as many feet as you want.

How does Arc plan to use the money raised?

We have over 100 athletes that participate in Special Olympics basketball, bowling, softball and track and field. From hotel rooms and tournament fees to transportation and vehicle rentals, we try very hard to keep the cost of our sports activities to a minimum. With added funds to our Special Olympics budget, we can continue to provide these sports activities to as many people with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities that need them.

We are hoping that you, our membership, will support this campaign yourselves as well as spreading the word to your friends, family members, neighbors, co-workers or any organization that you are a part of.

For every donation raised we will put a decal of a foot in our windows at The Arc so you can watch our progress. Send your donations to The Arc Mower County at 401 2nd Ave NE, Austin, MN 55912 or by visit www.thearcmc.org/mileofquarters.

Upcoming Events

•View the complete activity calendar at http://bit.ly/2ETIAOn.