My daughter who is Down Syndrome and 41 years old has been living in a L'Arche Home in Arlington, Virginia happily for four years. The beauty of this organization is that the staff members (assistants) are very carefully chosen and  live in the home creating an extended family feeling and a full community including other homes and executives in the neighborhood. . This method of L'Arche of Greater Washington is a much more humane way of living than the detached workers who come and go for 8 hour shifts at other group homes.  As I searched for what was correct for my daughter,  I was obhored when I witnessed other styles of "group homes" where disinterested staff members came in for their shifts and then left. There seemed to care less about what happened to their charges the other 16 hours of the day and there was no sense of community and extended family. My daughter thrives in this setting.  She is more creative, expressing leadership skills in this helpful protective environment.  She is happy and as a single child so happy to have "brothers and sisters" of all ages and all abilities.  She thrives being with a mixed community of college grades and friends with disabilities. Please visit, stay and reconsider making group homes where staff members only live outside the home! Thank you.