The Arc of East Central Iowa

09/27/2025

Time’s running out! Don’t miss your chance to support us on Target Circle’s list of featured nonprofits. Make your voice count before September 30th! Here’s how:

Step 1: Choose ‘My Target’ in the Target app or ‘Account’ on Target.com.
Step 2: Tap ‘Cast votes’.
Step 3: Find us *The Arc of East Central Iowa* & vote.

If you're not a member of Target Circle™ yet, joining is easy & FREE!
1. Give them your phone number at the store.
2. Sign up at target.com/circle.
3. Download the Target app.

Every eligible purchase at Target is equal to 1 vote! Your votes help direct where Target gives. Voting is only open until September 30th. Shop and then vote for us!

09/26/2025

We invite everyone to join us for our 2025 Annual Meeting & Awards. We will celebrate the success of the past year and recognize this year's award winners that help make a difference in our community and at The Arc!

Monday, September 29th at 6:30 PM at the Cedar Rapids Public Library (Whipple Auditorium) 450 5th Ave SE | Cedar Rapids OR Online - if you wish to attend online, please RSVP to Theresa at tlewis@arceci.org for the link.

Here are this year's winners! 🎉

➡ Direct Service Professionals (DSP) of the Year - Allyson Anderson & Gale Lauwyck
➡ Super Siblings of the Year - Cassius Bean & Colby Martin
➡ Community Member/Partner of the Year - Katie Sievert & UnityPoint - St. Luke's Hospital
➡ Employer of the Year - Craft'd

09/25/2025

Here are our final 3 amazing packages that are available in this year's raffle!
https://secure.qgiv.com/for/202raf/event/2025raffle/

➡️ Pamper Package: Body, Car & Cravings
Talk about some serious self-care!! Relax and pamper yourself with a massage or facial at TWO local spas! Take care of your car with three car washes from Tommy’s Express and enjoy a pizza a month for an entire year from Need Pizza! That’s 12 pizzas! Everyone NEEDS this!
Donated by: Glow Bar, Tommy’s Car Wash, Need Pizza, Skin Society
Valued at: $575

➡️ Pit Boss-Level BBQ & Cooler
Get your patio cooking skills going with this 3-burner Pit Boss Ultimate Griddle with cover and utensils as well as an Igloo cooler filled with some of your favorite local beers. Use your $70 Hy-Vee meat bundle to get your grill skills going!
Donated by: Grill Works, Thrivent, The Smothers Family, Awaken Chiropractic, Hy-Vee
Valued at: $945

➡️ Staycation Cedar Rapids
Create a memorable weekend with your Cedar Rapids Staycation package. You’ll get an overnight at the DoubleTree in Downtown Cedar Rapids, tickets to see a production at TCR, A gift card to Black Sheep, a family 4-pack of tickets to the Rough Riders and a gift card to Granite City.
Donated by: DoubleTree, Theatre Cedar Rapids, Black Sheep, Rough Riders, Granite City
Valued at: $475

Go to: https://secure.qgiv.com/for/202raf/event/2025raffle/ to purchase your tickets or see what other packages are available.

09/24/2025

📣ONLY ONE SPOT LEFT!📣

If you’ve always wanted to learn to curl, now is your chance. Curl Jam 2025, benefiting The Arc of East Central Iowa, has room for one more team! Get your friends or co-workers together and secure your spot! Each team gets a coach for the entire event who will teach everyone how to play and learn strategies before the competition begins.

Don’t let this opportunity slip away!

Curl Jam - Friday, October 3rd from 11:00 AM - 4:30 PM at the ImOn Ice Arena.
Sign Up Today: https://secure.qgiv.com/for/curljam/event/curljam2025/

09/24/2025

THIS FRIDAY! It's going to be a great event! 🧡

Friday (9/26) at Eastern Iowa Arts Academy- support The Arc’s dayhab artists at Art Without Limits! 100% of sales benefit the artists.

09/23/2025

Our first-ever gala "Art Without Limits: A Celebration Gala" with the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy is THIS Friday and it's not too late to join us. It will be an unforgettable evening celebrating the creativity and talent of some of our community’s most inspiring artists.

➡ Call up your friends and family and make this an event you attend together as a fun evening out.
➡ Purchase your tickets. Purchasing a head of time is preferred but you will also be able to purchase tickets at the door.
➡ Dress up! We have so much to celebrate!
➡ Get ready to be amazed at the artistic talent of our Day Hab participants while enjoying music, food, and friends.
* Some art may be available to purchase from the artists

Friday, September 26th
6:00 - 8:00 PM
Eastern Iowa Arts Academy, 2630 B Ave NE
$35 per person

Event Details: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CJs9sUfdw/
Buy Tickets: https://checkout.square.site/merchant/E3MGVNE1Z5Z6X/checkout/32TC7HPXS5E3WGIGHGFTAQTU?fbclid=IwY2xjawM_rwJleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMb010dXhPMFdYRUVDSm1sAR68YWXF24CeKAVKc-vm9AVqN9LR1KRyXvnJxQMAHl0BpOhRVB0wDt9Uzgl9qg_aem_Fdg91IXo58bZvKL_SOV_Ow

09/22/2025

Thank you to Variety - the Children's Charity of Iowa for supporting The Arc. Their grant funding will provide updated sensory furniture and other items for our Special needs childcare programs! 🧡

09/19/2025

This year we had so many great nominations come in for DSP of the Year and Super Sibling of the Year that we couldn’t choose just one! We wish we could have selected them all because everyone nominated truly are rock stars but we had to narrow it down. Here are this year's winners! 🎉

➡ Direct Service Professionals (DSP) of the Year - Allyson Anderson & Gale Lauwyck
➡ Super Siblings of the Year - Cassius Bean & Colby Martin
➡ Community Member/Partner of the Year - Katie Sievert & UnityPoint - St. Luke's Hospital
➡ Employer of the Year - Craft'd

We invite everyone to join us for our 2025 Annual Meeting & Awards. We will celebrate the success of the past year and recognize these wonderful award winners that help make a difference in our community and at The Arc!

Monday, September 29th at 6:30 PM
Cedar Rapids Public Library, Whipple Auditorium
450 5th Ave SE | Cedar Rapids
OR
Online - if you wish to attend online, please RSVP to Theresa at tlewis@arceci.org for the link.

09/18/2025

Here are 3 fantastic packages that are available in this year's raffle!
https://secure.qgiv.com/for/202raf/event/2025raffle/

➡️ Iowa Women's Basketball: Drive, Dine & Dunk
Grab a great meal at Big Grove Brewery and then head down to Iowa City to root on the Iowa Women’s Basketball Team with two tickets to a game to be mutually agreed upon by the donor and the winner. Your car will be in tip-top shape for the drive down too after you get it washed at Tommy’s Car Wash (3 washes included).
Donated by: Angela & Dennis Jordan, Tommy’s Car Wash and Big Grove Brewery
Valued at: $295

➡️ Local Love: The Best of Cedar Rapids & Marion
The Cedar Rapids/Marion area is so fortunate to have so many beloved local businesses. You will get to shop and dine at SIX of the local businesses that make our community so special.
Donated by: Moss, Scout of Marion, Nelson’s Meat Market, Tomaso’s, Loosies, Starlite
Valued at: $295

➡️ Nordstrom Shopping Spree
Complete your holiday shopping or do some personal retail therapy. Have fun spending $250 at Nordstrom with your Nordstrom gift certificate.
Donated by: Jake Stigers
Valued at: $250

Go to: https://secure.qgiv.com/for/202raf/event/2025raffle/ to purchase your tickets or see what other packages are available.

09/18/2025

Ever thought about participating in 4-H? There is a new adaptive 4-H club, the Linn County Pioneers, that might be the perfect fit. Join them this Sunday, September 21st for their open house to find out more.

Join us to learn more about Linn County's new adaptive 4-H club, the Linn County Pioneers!

We will be hosting an open house on Sunday September 21st from 2:00-3:00 PM at the Linn County Extension Office, 1770 Boyson Rd, Hiawatha. This is your chance to learn more about this new and engaging opportunity.

All youth are welcome!

Email zlutz@iastate.edu for more information.

09/17/2025

This year's Project SEARCH participants are off and running! 🧡

𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝘁. 𝗟𝘂𝗸𝗲'𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗦𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛 𝗰𝗼𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁! 👏👏 One of their first orders of business was meeting and joining UnityPoint Health - Cedar Rapids President Casey Greene for a photo.

Project SEARCH is a program dedicated to preparing individuals with special needs for employment. Through partnerships with area school districts and local support agencies like The The Arc of East Central Iowa, UnityPoint Health helps high school students with disabilities receive training and employment opportunities.

Learn more about the program at uph.link/ProjectSearch

09/16/2025

Next Friday, September 26th from 6:00 - 8:00 PM our VERY talented Day Hab participants will be showcasing their creative pieces of art that they have been working on with the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy at the Art Without Limits: A Celebration Gala event. https://www.facebook.com/share/17EgFp8nia/

If you haven't already - be sure to get your tickets for this incredible event! https://checkout.square.site/merchant/E3MGVNE1Z5Z6X/checkout/32TC7HPXS5E3WGIGHGFTAQTU?fbclid=IwY2xjawM2R3lleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFpQm10aFJqSUhhTERqZUsxAR7HOi4jN7kUoRboCC25jt8yYrLaM1RUdJcQtooBKQNWfFQpfPYyZ9ybc986Zw_aem_Ap_WbSWu6oAC2KGZ9lqdCg