Being an assistant is about sharing life
L’Arche has a distinct spirit where persons with intellectual disabilities and those who provide personal care truly share life with one another while living together in a L’Arche home.
We cook and eat dinner together, get together with friends, participate in activities in our neighbourhoods, go on vacation together, and celebrate often. In living this simple yet profound experience, Assistants gain valuable life skills, opportunities for personal growth and self direction, as well as enhanced leadership abilities.
Career opportunities
We are always happy to welcome new Assistants to the role of living with, supporting, and developing friendships with our members with intellectual disabilities.
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Through friendship, meaningful work, fun social activities, and home life, assistants and persons with intellectual disabilities build communities of belonging together.
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In a world so often divided by difference, L’Arche creates inclusive communities where people of many differences live and work together.
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Assistants will be supported to learn and grow through their daily lives in their home and community, and, through our more formal Leadership Training Programs.
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There are many opportunities to volunteer in a L’Arche community
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Hundreds of people come to L’Arche communities each year to learn, to grow, and to have an extraordinary life-changing experience. Most make an initial commitment of one year. Many Assistants will choose to stay at L’Arche for several years, and some for their entire career.
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What's it like to live in a L'Arche community?
Assistants come to L’Arche from around the world and from their local areas. Together with the people with intellectual disabilities, they create homes of welcome and celebration. The key to life in L’Arche is a commitment to helping one another build positive, supportive relationships.
- 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 and benefits are provided.
What assistants say about L'Arche
Live-in assistant role
Becoming a L’Arche assistant is an extraordinary and life-changing experience.
The rhythm of each L’Arche house is set by the needs of the people with intellectual disabilities in the home. As a live-in assistant you will typically live with at least 5-7 other people. Everyone is given their own bedroom space. Sharing life in a community isn’t a 9 to 5 job. Our model integrates working and living together and therefore we need to be present to each other beyond typical workplace hours; Personal time is built into the structure of each day, typically taken in the afternoon. Assistants are asked to support people with intellectual disabilities with personal care and share in the housework.
Learn more about being a house assistant
Lisa: an assistant with a sense of adventure and a compassionate heart
One thing to know about Lisa Wilianto is that she loves adventure, especially if it involves travel. Over a decade ago, she left her homeland of Indonesia to pursue a Master’s degree in Rural Systems Management in Australia. In the fall of 2021, Lisa was itching for a new adventure and feeling that she’d like to try living in Canada. She noted a posting for an assistant’s position in Sudbury. Lisa felt a pull, but signing up for this job did not come without sacrifice for Lisa. She had to leave her husband and her children, who were still in school, and to make the long journey alone.
She landed in Northern Ontario just in time for her first real experience of winter. “I was excited about it,” she says. “When I lived in L’Arche Liverpool, it snowed only once and the snow melted that same day.” An Ontarian might say, “Be careful what you wish for!” but she’s loved her winters in Sudbury, especially the winter walks and hockey games. She’s learned that “there’s no bad weather, only bad clothing, and the best way to embrace winter is through sports.” Early on, she went with assistants and core members to a Sudbury Wolves game. Seeing a hockey game in person for the first time, she fell in love with the sport. “The adrenaline is great,” she says. “I have to admit I like the fighting too.” She also likes watching figure skating, where her favourite star is Elvis Stojko.
However, another, even more profound experience than a Canadian winter awaited Lisa in the coming months in L’Arche Sudbury.
Read more about Lisa's experience
Beyond welcoming
L’Arche Canada strives to create a world where each person is not just welcomed but finds a place of belonging. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are central to the way that we live our mission together.
- As of now, we have welcomed assistants from 77 countries around the world, and we are always hoping to expand this list.
- Training is provided to all members of L’Arche in Canada on Inclusion, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) fundamentals and Unconscious Bias.
- We are equal opportunity employers.
At L’Arche, people with and without intellectual disabilities live, work, and learn together creating communities of friendship and belonging
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