ARC Annual Membership Meeting & Holiday Dinner Dance – Sun. Dec. 13 Noon – 4 pm at the Rutland Elks Lodge
ARC 2026 Halloween Dance
A spooky good time was had by all at ARC’s 2026 Halloween Dance on Sunday, Oct. 18th at the American Legion in Rutland. Members came in great costumes and enjoyed Domino’s Pizza and cake for lunch followed by dancing and socializing with friends.
Our sincere appreciation goes out to the Rutland American Legion Post #31 for hosting this event and Domino’s Pizza for providing the pizza.
ARC 2026 Barn Picnic
ARC’s 2026 Barn Picnic at the Duffy family home in Poultney was held on Sunday Oct. 4th. It was a beautiful day for a cookout and outdoor games. The Poultney Rotary Club sponsored the lunch of hot dogs, beans, macaroni salad, and a variety of chips. ARC board member Jen McNeil provided cupcakes for dessert.
A big thank you to the Duffy Family for providing a beautiful location for this event, the Poultney Rotary Club for their sponsorship, and to all who volunteered at the event.
ARC Community Enrichment Series: Open Discussion with Rutland County Probate Judge Karl C. Anderson
On Tuesday, September 22, Rutland County Probate Judge Karl C. Anderson, Judicial Assistant Jessica Neilson, and Atty. S. Scott Smith had an open and informative discussion with ARC members. Topics discussed were the role and duties of the Probate Judge and court, the different types of guardianships, the evaluations and hearings required in order for a guardianship to be granted or ended, and when the services of the probate court are required after a person’s death.
ARC members enjoyed the presentation and gained a better understanding of guardianships. We greatly appreciate Judge Anderson, Ms. Neilson, and Atty. Smith for sharing their valuable time and expertise with us to make this presentation possible. Click here to view this presentation.
National Night Out 2026
ARC was pleased to participate in National Night Out on Tuesday, Aug. 4th. About a dozen ARC members came to help at our booth -handing out information about ARC and our giveaways of ARC coffee mugs and chap sticks, various flavors of teas, and temporary tattoos for children.
Although our booth was very busy, our members took turns going off to get BBQ dinner and other treats, as well as explore all the other booths. All had a great time!
Benson Burdock Festival & Family Day
We had a great time at the Benson Burdock Festival & Family Day on Sunday, Aug. 2nd! This year ARC’s Aktion Club attended with their homemade items. We were all so proud of our display! Many people came to visit and most of them made a purchase, or left a donation. Terry was our lead salesperson for the day and Colleen assisted with her great record keeping skills!
We all enjoyed Benson’s unique small town parade, delicious barbeque, mini-golf, the book sale, wonderful vendors and more… Thank you to our Aktion Club and SABE-R members that came to enjoy the morning with us. This group pic is a keeper!
Sincere thanks to our event hosts that did their best to make us comfortable and a very special thanks to the Wheel Inn who made sure there was parking for our Bus!
ARC / Kiwanis Club Family Fun Day
Despite the rainy weather on Saturday, July 18th, ARC members had a good time at our 2026 ARC/ Kiwanis Club of Rutland, Vermont Family Fun Day at the Pittsford Recreation Center. We had a BBQ lunch of hamburgers and hot dogs, potato chips, and a variety of soft drinks and individual brownie/cakes and pies for dessert – all courtesy of the Rutland Kiwanis Club. After lunch, members enjoyed singing karaoke, playing bingo, and socializing with friends.
We are so appreciative of the Rutland Kiwanis Club for sponsoring and volunteering their services at this annual event. Thank you also to all who stepped out to help out at this event.
ARC 2026 Summer Splash – Sponsored by Come Alive Outside
We had a beautiful day and a great time at our ARC 2026 Summer Splash on Sunday, June 28th at Lake Bomoseen State Park. ARC members enjoyed a BBQ lunch of hamburgers and hotdogs, with a variety of salads, fruit, and cookies and brownies for dessert. After lunch, members played games of twister, corn hole, and bingo. There was also a limbo contest; congratulations to Caroline who took 1st place! 2nd place to Ellie and 3rd place to Kelia!!!
We extend our sincere appreciation to Come Alive Outside for sponsoring this annual event and to all the volunteers at the event.
Rutland City Mayor Tom Donahue Met with the ARC SABE-R Group
On June 9th Rutland City Mayor Tom Donahue came to visit us at our monthly Self-Advocates meeting. It was interesting to find some similarities between the mayor’s job and that of our self-advocates. The mayor gave our self-advocates some tips on presenting to an audience, such as sticking to the top 2 or 3 points you feel most important. It was a great visit and we are very grateful that he was able to make time for us. You can view a video of this presentation in three segments on PEGTV: Segment 1 Rutland City Mayor Visits ARC Self Advocates, Segment 2 Getting Your Message Out, and Segment 3 Mayor’s Priorities
ARC AKtion Club Fundraiser
Some of our ARC AKtion Club members attended the Fair Haven Spring Fling event on Saturday, May 23rd to sell the craft items the club has been making. They had a successful and fun day! The AKtion Club donates all the proceeds from their fundraisers to local nonprofits at Christmas time.
GMSA Voices and Choices Conference
On Tuesday May 12th, members of ARC’s SABE-R group along with staff attended the GMSA Voices and Choices Conference at the Double Tree by Hilton in Burlington. There they participated in various workshops related to self-advocacy and life skills. They also enjoyed a nice lunch. Congratulations to April Gilman on being chosen as our SABE-R group’s 2026 Self Advocate of the Year!
ARC 2026 Spring Fling Dance
ARC’s 2026 Spring Fling Dance was held on Sunday, May 3 at the Castleton American Legion. A lunch of sandwiches with vegetable and fruit platters and various salads was served courtesy of the Castleton American Legion. Followed by dancing and catching up with friends. Members of the Fair Haven Police Dept. stopped in for a visit and dance.
ARC extends its sincere appreciation to the Castleton American Legion for hosting and sponsoring this event; and to all who volunteered at the event.
ARC Members Attend Project Vision Meetings
Stephanie and April accompanied Tia to the Project Vision meeting on April 7th. It was Stephanie’s first time at Project Vision and she did a great job introducing herself to the audience. After the meeting they were able to speak with Rutland City’s new Mayor Tom Donahue and new Chief of Police, Matthew Prouty.
ARC Spring 2026 Life Skill Courses
The ARC Life Skills courses Budgeting Part 2, Feeling Through Art , Reading for Joy, and Eating Well for Myself wrapped up in April and May. Congratulations to our recent graduates! What a great time we had during these life skill courses.
Budgeting Part 2: Left front: Tiffany B., Patty C., Ellie A. – Back row left to right: Jennifer McNeil, Instructor; April G., Terrell O. and Lester C.
Feeling Through Art: Front, left to right: Annaliese B., April G., and Patty C. – Back row left to right: Tia Poalino, Instructor and Lester C.
Reading for Joy: Front, left to right: Stephanie L., Patty C. – Back row left to right: Tiffany B., Ellie A., Lester C., April G., and Diane Drake – Instructor.
Eating Well for Myself: Front, left to right: Tiffany B., Patty C., Karoline G. – Back row left to right: Diane Drake – Instructor; April G., Lester C., and Terrell O.
In June, the Safety and Prevention and Holistic Health courses were completed. Congratulations to these graduates:
Safety and Prevention: Back row – left to right: April G., course facilitator, Tia Poalino, Lester C. Front row – left to right: Ellie A., Patty C., Stephanie L., Annaliese B. Front on knees: Tiffany B.
Holistic Health: Back row – Left to right: Ellie A., Lester C., April G. Front row – Left to right: Patty C., Tiffany B. and course instructor, Lisa Lynch
Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month March 2026
March 11, 2026 was Disability Advocacy Day at the Vermont State House. Our members Patty Czarnecki, April Gilman and Caroline Gillen represented ARC Rutland Area in the Card room at the State House. This group engaged with their representatives – William Canfield, Christopher Howland, Mary Howard, Jim Harrison, Chris Keyser, David Bosch, and Patricia McCoy. We want to thank each one of them for taking the time to look at our table and discuss important topics like transportation!
On Tuesday, March 24 ARC’s Self Advocates Becoming Empowered – Rutland (SABE-R) group presented their Disability Advocacy presentation to the Fair Haven Police Department at the Fair Haven Municipal Building. In attendance were members of the Fair Haven Police Department, Pawlet Constable, community members, and other representatives of local emergency response teams.
ARC SABE-R members Patty Czarnecki, April Gilman and Stephanie Lovelette provided excellent presentations. In addition, we enjoyed an engaging, open, and vibrant discussion about developmentally disabled adults transitioning from high school into adults as community members. The discussion included perceptions and relationships with local law enforcement officials.
ARC Rutland Area 2025 – Year in Review
For a complete list of our meetings, events, and activities, please see our Calendar page.