The Arc’s roots, Williams explained, trace to the deinstitutionalization push of the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s, when families organized to move loved ones out of large state institutions and into community-based care. “Families got together and said, what do we want for the individuals that we love,” he said. “And so, The Arc was born from that.”
Today the agency operates three group homes housing about 16 residents, along with two day programs, one in Starke and another at the former Hampton Elementary School, which The Arc leases from the Bradford County School Board. In all, it serves roughly 55 people through its day programs and reaches five counties: Bradford, Union, Alachua, Clay and Putnam. In a rural region, Williams said, staff will sometimes drive 45 minutes to pick up a single client from towns like Melrose, Keystone Heights, Waldo or Lake Butler. “They don’t have access to services anywhere else,” he said.
