)
Life of an Assistant
As an Assistant you will be invited to:
- • Be changed by your friendships with people with an intellectual disability.
- • Change your perspective on what you value and how you see the world.
- • Gain confidence and competence as you develop new skills.
- • Learn how to live and work with people who are different than you.
- • Have an adventure in living and learning that just might change your life.
- • Learn the importance of celebrating the little moments of daily life.
Daily Life of an Assistant:
The key to life in L’Arche is being open to relationship. Assistants and core members (people with intellectual disabilities) create home and share their lives together in households of eight to ten people. Days are filled with the ordinary tasks of daily living: cooking, bathing, cleaning, laundry, shopping, accompanying people to medical appointments attending regular community meetingsand events. Home life is the cornerstone of L’Arche. The evening meal, birthdays, and times of prayer are small but cherished celebrations that strengthen the bonds between people who live and work together.
Most people come with an initial commitment of one year. Assistants come with a broad range of backgrounds and qualifications. All new assistants participate in a program of orientation and training. Compensation, benefits, days away and vacation time are provided.
Experiences of Past L’Arche Toronto Assistants:
“Being welcomed as I am and being invited to share the gifts and lives of others was a huge blessing. The hard part came in opening up myself to be vulnerable. To be served and loved. This lesson, which can be a tough one to learn, doesn’t leave once you depart from L’Arche.”
Karen Diepeveen - Assistant
“I really knew what Jean Vanier was talking about in his book Becoming Human when he talks about loneliness and how it can be something that is almost a despairing or a taste of death-- even though you might be surrounded by people like in a city---that does not mean that any of those people are going to reach out and actually commit to loving or being your friend---I found that the community helped me to reach out of my own loneliness and try to commit to loving people again. “
Alison Bomers – Assistant