Community Foundation’s Women and Girls Fund Supports The Arc Eastern Connecticut

The Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut’s Northeast and Southeast Women and Girls Funds has awarded The Arc Eastern Connecticut $2,500 and $3,500, respectively, to augment and expand its successful “Voices” program for women with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in both New London and Windham counties. Voices provides safe, nurturing groups for women with IDD who are at risk of, or survivors of, sexual assault, domestic violence or exploitation. Since 2016, the Foundation’s support has allowed the program to offer a variety of workshops led by area professionals in the areas of self-care and self-advocacy, establishing boundaries, stress reduction, personal safety, art therapy, etc. This year, a grant from the Northeast CT Women and Girls Fund will allow The Arc ECT to begin to offer the Voices program to women at its Danielson offices as well as at its main offices in Norwich.  
 
“Many participants tell us this is the first group in which they’ve felt comfortable enough to begin to explore issues they’ve carried with them for many years,” notes The Arc ECT’s CEO Kathleen Stauffer. “Without the support of the Community Foundation and the Women and Girls Funds, this success would not be possible.  The Foundation has been a tremendous partner.”   
 
Voices is part of The Arc ECT’s Community Life & Advocacy (CL&A) program, which provides a wide variety of advocacy, support, health/fitness and social activities to people with IDD throughout eastern Connecticut.  To learn more about CL&A or The Arc ECT’s other programs throughout the region, please visit thearcect.org or contact Denise Tift at (860) 8894435, ext. 116.