A friend of mine recently invited me to play with his group for the ARC of Monroe Charity Golf Tournament. As a golf fanatic, I was excited at this opportunity to play a round with some friends. The day was filled with great people, good laughs, and a decent day of golf at a beautiful course.
The reason for this post though, was the realization that I came to as I was sitting there during the dinner ceremony. Let me give you a little background first……
For those that don’t know, ARC of Monroe County has been providing a variety of programs and services for over 3,500 individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities and their families in the Rochester community for over 50 years. This charity golf tournament is held every year to raise money for the ARC so that they can continue to provide these outstanding programs and support. Quite a few ARC of Monroe staff members, board members (which my friend is on), and volunteers work diligently to put on this event, which is no small undertaking I’m sure.
OK, here is where my realization kicks in…..
Many of the individuals that the ARC of Monroe support are able to attend the event each year. A couple were able to actually participate in the golf tournament, many were able to join some of the fun games held after the tournament and most of them joined us for the dinner ceremony after the tournament. Each table got the privilege to eat with at least one of these individuals and an ARC staffer. As the dinner ceremony progressed I was absolutely impressed with the love and dedication the ARC staff, and you could see it in the smiles, laughter and hugs of the people they support! I realized
that the ARC Staffers are strong people. Stronger than me because I have children and feel I do a reasonable job at this task, but my children do not have the challenges that I saw that night. The individuals that ARC supports have disabilities that include Autism, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Asperger Syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorders among others. To work day-in
and day-out with these kinds of challenges takes a strong soul, patience of a Saint, and a heart of gold and I hold the utmost respect to those that work in such a field.
They truly are amazing people….
