Meet Marie Bacsik | ARCC Center Foundation Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marie Bacsik and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marie, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I have always been in the special needs field, but I felt that working as a Respite Worker was the most important and valuable job I ever had. After working in several other positions I felt very strongly that supporting families in the home was the basis for a child to have a thriving life and I wanted to dedicate all of my time and energy to making that happen for as many families as possible.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
ARCC Center Foundation is a non-profit that provides respite care to families that have children that have a developmental disability. We provide mostly free services and serve families all over San Diego County and we are now providing Financial Management Services for the Self-Determination Program all over California as well as expanding our respite services throughout Southern California! Having people available 24/7 for care and concerns sets us apart from others. Anything can happen in this field and we are constantly evolving and adding new tech that allows us to better serve our families. Also, our staff sets us apart. I try my best to only hire people that I would trust with my own daughter, we use this service as well. Becoming one of the larger respite agencies in our County took a long time and was difficult, but by providing great services we have built a great reputation and we have grown tremendously just by word of mouth. We are so fortunate to be able to serve so many amazing clients and families! I used to think having a successful business came down to being an expert in finances and having plenty of money (I wasn’t flourishing in either), but it turns out that passion and providing a great service were the most important things. As long as we were providing great services, ARCC Center grew automatically and I think our passion for what we do was easy for people to see as well. I also can’t leave out never taking “no” for an answer. I was told that countless times while I was getting started, and even now, but I have always been persistent and just kept powering through and finding out ways to make things work. I would love for people to know that they are not alone and there is help available for families that have children (infants through seniors) that have developmental disabilities. Reach out to your local Regional Center and be persistent, there are amazing free services available!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Honestly- If my best friend was visiting I would want us to hang out at my house. We started a really cool garden and we have some great fruit trees. Picking fruit, making juice, and just hanging out and enjoying nature would be the best time ever! If we were to venture out I would always recommend Balboa Park, Campland, Hillcrest, Tacos El Gordo, Sahara Taste of the Middle East in El Cajon, Lolita’s in Chula Vista, Greek Chicken, Cafe in the Park at Balboa Park, and Filippi’s in Little Italy of course!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My Husband and daughter have taught me so much and inspired me to do better every single day. My Husband has encouraged me every step of the way and my daughter has taught me patience and has turned me into the best Advocate that I can be. My daughter has Down Syndrome and Autism so now my own family is served by ARCC Center Foundation which has given me more insight into what our families need than I ever could have learned on my own. Also, Kathy Sweeten was always a mentor of mine. Kathy was the former Director of CARES Inc., a local ABA company and I learned so much from her.

Website: www.arccCenter.org
Instagram: @arccCenterRespite
Twitter: @ArccCenter
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArccCenter