Feel peace of mind when you rely on an experienced caretaker for your loved one. Thanks to The Arc of East Central Iowa, you can access respite services — supervised care of a child or adult with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

What’s Respite Care?

Respite is temporary care to provide relief to caregivers or guardians while they fulfill other responsibilities, run errands, or take a break and recharge to avoid stress or burnout.

Types of Respite

Rely on The Arc for a variety of respite options to meet your family’s needs. Enjoy the convenience of respite available:

• One-on-one in your home, the home of a registered provider, or in the community
• In group settings on weeknights, weekends, and during the weekday when school is not in session, offered in accessible locations in Cedar Rapids. The staff-to-participant ratio depends on the participants and their needs.

You can schedule in-home respite or respite in the home of a registered provider on a regular basis or as needed. Services can last from a few hours to extended stays.

Activities & Services

Expect skilled care from trained professionals who regularly work with children and adults with special needs. During respite, your loved one can take part in activities that are fun, age-appropriate, and promote social skills in a safe environment. They can also enjoy supervised activities in the community with their provider.

Respite services are funded through the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) program waiver. You’re eligible to receive services through the Intellectual Disability, Brain Injury, Children’s Mental Health, Elderly, or Ill & Handicapped waiver.

You can request respite hours at your annual team meeting or initial intake to participate in group respite activities.

Groups Brochures

Download the upcoming monthly schedule for group respite events, or view this month’s calendar of events:

• December 2024 Brochure
• January 2025 Brochure
• February 2025 Brochure

Registration Rules

Your Service and Support Coordinator will send an email that shows a schedule of activities each month. Registration is open the 1st through the 10th of each month for group respite activities scheduled for the following month.

Everyone registering in the designated period will have an equal chance to attend. But if the requested registrations are more than the available slots, The Arc will review past attendance and/or use an objective lottery method to select participants. Those who have not attended will be given higher priority.

Register for Group Activity

If you are interested in registering for an activity, reply to the email from your Service and Support Coordinator or call 319-365-0487. You can also email ArcGroups@arceci.org.

Registration Notification

Your confirmation to attend, or be on a waiting list, will be confirmed as soon as the participant list is completed, but no later than the 15th of the month.

Event Fees

Any activity that requires The Arc to purchase tickets or extra supplies will have a minimal program fee. See the schedule for specific event costs.

Contact Us

Questions about respite or want to schedule services? Call Respite Scheduling at The Arc at 319-365-0487.