Golf Tournament Co-chair Reflects on his $1.3M Impact on The Arc Baltimore

After the dust settled from The Arc Baltimore’s 20^th Annual Golf Tournament, tournament committee co-chair Mike Eikenberg from Expressway Office Solutions reflected on his involvement with The Arc Baltimore and its golf tournament:

Mike Eikenberg,
Golf Tournament co-chair

I became associated with The Arc in 1985. The Arc Baltimore has a very special place in my heart. My Uncle Franny received live-in residential services at his home on Radcliffe Rd in Towson from The Arc Baltimore (it was known as BARC back then) from 1984-1991. Their staff also supported him at his job. The Arc Baltimore is a wonderful organization. From Steve Morgan down, I see the commitment of the employees and the impact they make in our community every day!  Most employees are with a company just to collect a paycheck. The exact opposite is true at The Arc.

It’s been great to see the tournament evolve since it started 20 years ago. The tournament has continued to flourish through a very difficult recession; we are very appreciative to all our sponsors who help make this tournament successful every year.  I always get an awesome feeling at the tournament especially when supported individuals come out to volunteer. It is a true reminder of The Arc’s mission.

The tournament has been so successful because of Libby Bryant. It begins and ends with her.  She has been the driving force for 20 years that keeps this tournament organized and successful. In addition to Libby’s hard work, our corporate sponsors witness and appreciate all of The Arc’s work in the Baltimore community. Each year, it gets easier for them to support the tournament.  

My association with The Arc Baltimore and having the opportunity to contribute to their mission has brought me great pleasure.

Editor’s note: As a result of Mike and his fellow co-chair, Chuck Shettle’s 20 years of dedication and hard work, The Arc Baltimore’s annual golf tournament raised over $1.3 million dollars in support of our programs and services for adults and children with intellectual and developmental disabilities!

Ken Mays (far left) from title sponsor Scientific Plant Service, Chuck Shettle (in red) and Mike Eikenberg (in striped shirt in back) present a check for nearly $1.3M to Executive Director Steve Morgan and two crew members from The Arc Baltimore's landscape services.

A Letter From Steve Announcing The Arc Baltimore Blog

By Steve Morgan, Executive Director

Time is precious. It’s why The Arc Baltimore strives to keep all of our online communications as concise as possible. We want to convey to you the essentials of Arc news and resources along with some of the fun event pictures and success stories in a way that you can digest quickly.

At the same time, we have issues, challenges, victories, trends, and sometimes even debates that we want to share with you, but they can require more detail and data than we generally include. We also want to invite your reactions and insights on these matters – which leads me to announcing and kicking off The Arc Baltimore Blog. Here we will require a bit more time from you, our readers, but we hope to offer more depth and perspective, and this online application will give you a way to respond to or to share the post with others. I will write here on occasion, as will others from our senior management team, program leaders, and those who receive support from The Arc Baltimore.

Here’s some of what we hope to cover:

• The challenges siblings face when they assume responsibilities for the social, legal, emotional, and financial matters that their parents handled in the life of their sister or brother with disabilities.
• The roadblocks we encounter in finding more and better job opportunities for youth transitioning from school to the adult world.
• The individuals with disabilities who are happily living longer lives and who now want fulfilling retirement options.
• How assistive technology is unlocking words and other outlets for expression.
• The balance of having inclusive communities and integrated social outlets with affinity gatherings and events that may be perceived as segregated.
• What parent advocates face in the quest for the best education they can get for their children.
• And more.

We will try to not over-do the blog, but do justice to the voices in our community. Hold us accountable as we work on this and let us know what you like, what you think, and what you want.

Best regards,

Steve Morgan 
The Arc Baltimore
Executive Director