All In The Family: Engaging With Latino Communities
H.O.P.E, A New Initiative Created By The Arc To Help Latinos With Special Needs
By Tiffany Young
You may have seen the white and orange van around the county. The one with an arc logo on the door. What you may not know is that this van belongs to a dynamic organization known as The Arc Prince George’s County.
For more than 70 years, The Arc has been providing transportation, employment training and residential services for helping people with developmental and intellectual disabilities and their families. Through their services and advocacy work, The Arc has been able to help thousands of people with special needs from birth through adulthood and this year, they are making efforts to reach the Latino population.
The Arc is focusing on an initiative that will target the specific needs of the Hispanic community. H.O.P.E., which stands for, Hispanic Outreach Positive Engagement will make sure Hispanic families get the same support that English speaking families get so that they understand how to support their special needs loved ones. In recognizing the contributions and importance of Hispanic and Latino Americans to the United States and to celebrate their heritage and culture, The Arc has room to grow its resources and in making sure they incorporate programming for all underserved communities. It's the desire to empower Hispanics with special needs to have access to the services and resources necessary to thrive and become engaged in all aspects of society.
The Arc is now one of the largest disability service agencies in the state of Maryland. In 2020, the Census Bureau reported that 171,094 Hispanics were living in the county, and with such a large volume of people speaking Spanish, The Arc started communicating in Spanish so that there were no language barriers.
“We started having events whether in the schools or through our center that we could bring in someone to assist us in communicating to those who speak Spanish. It really made a big impact and we saw a greater need for outreach,” said Melonee Clark, the Arc’s Education & Community Engagement Man
The Arc recognizes the importance of keeping the community informed about their rights. While this initiative can have some positive outcomes, the Arc often is met with challenges. Simply having a brochure written in Spanish or having someone interpret information has been a road block. Katherine Lopez, who is the new Bilingual Program Administrator at The Arc, says another challenge has been building trust with the families.
“Our initiative has to make sure we build partnerships with other organizations within the county. It is the only way we can support these families, it’s not just giving them the information but its making sure they understand it,” Lopez said.
Lopez is busy translating information into Spanish and partnering with local universities and businesses to find volunteers who can assist The Arc in speaking other languages. Other types of outreach include partnering with faith-based organizations and schools.
The Arc impact is bigger than the eye can see in the county. With a budget of over $30MM, the Arc is able to impact thousands of people each year through outreach, education, referral services,
benefits application support and direct service. Our goal is to eliminate the stigma, discrimination, and poor service and increase access and inclusion. Making Prince George’s County more inclusive and helping people with disabilities live their best lives, Executive Director Robert Maloneis aware that The Arc is stronger by its supporters. “Our work at The Arc Prince George’s County is emotional and heart-warming. For many people in this vulnerable population, we are the agency they call when they are in crisis,” Malone said.
We want to make sure that Hispanic families know that someone that looks like them is greeting them at the door, Clark said.
“We already know how big of a duty it is to care for a loved one with special needs, we don't want anyone to feel as if they can’t get help because no one can speak their language, therefore, we are working very hard in recruiting professionals to assist us, we don't want to turn anyone away,” Clark says.
From working through the challenging new realities of having a newborn with a developmental disability to building independence for someone within their home environment, the Arc is where they turn for help. “It has always been our mission to make sure no one feels alone, left in the shadows or worse yet, in a very dark place where they have no hope,” Malone says.
