My name is Yuko Gruber and I am a former live-in assistant from L'Arche Greater Washington DC. I lived and was a direct service provider in two homes in Arlington, VA for two years. The current language of the proposed legislation excludes L'Arche homes from being considered group homes in VA, which would dramatically undermine funding and supports and/or dissolve the homes of vibrant, active, compassionate and powerful members of the Arlington community.

My sense of the spirit of the Department of Justice settlement is that it wished to move our community away from institutional arrangements for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and allow them to be more fully integrated into the larger community where they can be honored and welcomed, and where the rest of the community can benefit and learn from their presence. L'Arche is a model where this vision is already a reality and L'Arche strives to support our "core members" with developmental disabilities to lead rich and full lives alongside people without developmental disabilities. The continuity of relationship and care provided by live-in assistants facilitates this vision, and perhaps most importantly allows many people without developmental disabilities to be profoundly shaped and changed by living daily alongside people who have disabilities. Please consider removing the language "who do not live in the home" from the proposed changes to allow L'Arche homes to continue to provide supportive, healthy, and welcoming homes for people with and without developmental disabilities.