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Father George Strohmeyer, co-founder of L’Arche Erie & Mary Ann Zarnick, long-time staff member

Father George Strohmeyer, co-founder of L’Arche Erie, and Mary Ann Zarnick, long-time staff member, talk about their introduction to the spiritual mission of the L’Arche movement, the founding of L’Arche Erie, the early years, and its ongoing work.

L’Arche Erie is a faith-based residential community where people with and without intellectual disabilities share life together. It is part of a worldwide federation of L’Arche communities, and was the first established in the United States. The French name “L’Arche” translates to “The Ark,” a reference to Noah’s Ark.

Father George Strohmeyer, a Catholic priest, co-founded L’Arche Erie with Sister Barbara Karsznia, a Catholic nun, in 1972. Father Strohmeyer served as pastoral leader for many years. Mary Ann Zarnick is one of the community’s longest-serving staff members.

The international L’Arche movement dates to 1964 when Canadian Jean Vanier (1928-2019), former Catholic seminarian and philosophy professor, and now denounced founder (see note below), began living with two formerly institutionalized men in the village of Trosly in northern France.

As of 2022, the world-wide L’Arche movement has grown to 154 communities in 38 countries on five continents. L’Arche Erie participates in the North American section of L’Arche International, which include communities in Cleveland, Boston and Syracuse, NY.

Note: In 2020, L’Arche International published findings from an independent inquiry into allegations of sexual misconduct by Jean Vanier. L’Arche International confirmed “credible and consistent testimonies from six adult women without disabilities, covering the period from 1970 to 2005.” The report on the inquiry goes on to say: “We are shocked by these discoveries and unreservedly condemn these actions, which are in total contradiction with the values Jean Vanier otherwise stood for. They are incompatible with the basic rules of respect and dignity of persons, and contrary to the fundamental principles on which L’Arche is based….L’Arche is committed to making sure that its 154 communities across the world are places of safety and growth for all its members, with and without disabilities.”

Download the transcript of the interview with Father George Strohmeyer & Mary Ann Zarnick.

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Interview with Nancy Murray, disability rights leader, and her daughter, Marisa Niwa

Nancy Murray, disability rights leader, and her daughter, Marisa Niwa, are well known in the Western Pennsylvania disability community. Nancy is the president of The Arc of Greater Pittsburgh, an organization with a long history of disability rights advocacy. Marisa is an independent adult with Down syndrome.

As a young married couple in the 1970s, Nancy Murray and her husband Joe became parents to Marisa and her brother Mickey Scarcelli through a program that connected children with disabilities to welcoming families.

In this interview, Nancy talks about her career in disability services and advocacy. Since the 1970s, she has worked in the areas of public policy, family support, supports coordination, healthcare, and state government. Her primary area of interest is the resilience of families of children and adults with disabilities, and the long-term impact of caring for a person with a disability on a family.

Marisa talks about independent living, her employment with Giant Eagle for nearly two decades, her volunteer work with South Hills Interfaith Movement, and her accomplishments as a Special Olympian in golf.

Download the transcript of the interview with Nancy Murray and Marisa Niwa.

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The Western Pennsylvania Disability History and Action Consortium preserves and shares the historic struggle of Western Pennsylvanians with disabilities to attain human and civil rights.

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We educate the public about disability history in order to improve community access, participation and equal opportunity, and to ensure disability rights through existing and new policies and laws.

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We join stakeholders across Pennsylvania to advocate on policies that ensure the civil rights of people with disabilities.

Western Pennsylvania has played a significant role in the history of disability rights. From Arc Allegheny’s efforts in the 1970s to expose abusive conditions in state institutions to Allegheny County’s development of the first paratransit system in the nation in the 1980s, Western Pennsylvania has taken a stand.

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