ARCH Membership

Member Benefits:

Your membership helps us to secure increased funding annually for the implementation of the Lifespan Respite Care Program and other programs that support family caregivers and those they care for; enables our work with federal agencies to ensure successful state implementation; and helps us advocate to grow and improve the quality of respite as the need expands.

  • Members receive timely legislative alerts and announcements of crucial private and public funding opportunities.

  • You will have access to ARCH publications and other products, such as respite start up manuals, funding guides, and coalition building materials as well as many new and updated materials. Many of these products are provided at no cost, but ARCH members receive a 10% discount when purchasing some of the materials that incur a fee.

  • You will also receive a discount on your national conference registration.

  • You will have  a significant voice in Washington, DC, on critical respite and crisis care legislation important to family caregivers, including the Lifespan Respite Care program, Medicaid and the Older Americans Act.

You membership:

  • Helps maintain the ARCH Respite Locator Service at no charge to family caregivers, providers and other users.

  • Helps ARCH assist states in building and strengthening state respite coalitions.

  • Supports scholarships for family caregivers to attend the National Lifespan Respite Conference.

Levels of Membership

There are several categories of membership.

  • Professional membership at $75 per year is appropriate for those working in the field.

  • Family membership ($25)  is for those family members who are caring for a loved one at home.

  • Students may join for $25 per year.

  • Memberships for organizations, coalitions and companies are also available.

    • Level 1 ($125) allows two individuals from the organization to become members.

    • Level 2 ($200) allows three individuals to become members

    • Level 3 ($325) allows a total of five individuals from the organization to become members.

Become a Member Today!

Because the ARCH parent organization, Families and Communities Rising is a 501(c)(3) organization, your contribution or membership donation in any amount is considered by the IRS to be tax deductible.

The ARCH National Respite Network is the only national technical asssistance, support and advocacy organization dedicated solely to promoting the development and expansion of quality respite programs.

Public Policy:

The National Respite Coalition, the policy division of ARCH, helps states and local communities to understand policy, educate policy makers, and build strong advocacy coalitions. It provides information and teaching tools to respite advocates throughout the country. The National Respite Coalition has convened a group of national and state organizations, the Lifespan Respite Task Force, dedicated to the support of federal lifespan respite legislation. The NRC is completely dependent on Membership fees and private donations.

Evaluation and Performance Measurement:

Both planned and crisis respite programs must be able to clearly and compellingly demonstrate that their efforts are achieving worthy outcomes related to the improvement of quality of life, and outcomes related to saving tax-payer dollars on more costly interventions such as foster care, nursing homes, or other institutional care. Respite programs across the United States field-tested tools for measuring program outcomes. The tools were developed by Dr. Ray Kirk of the University of North Carolina and are published in the ARCH guidebook, Evaluating and Reporting Outcomes: a Guide for Respite and Crisis Care Program Managers (1999). A second edition, revised by ARCH Evaluation Specialist Casandra Firman, was published in December, 2002. Click here.

In addition, the Lifespan Respite Technical Assistance and Resource Center has developed a Performance Measurement Guide for Lifespan Respite grantees and partners, but it may be helpful to all who provide respite. ARCH also convened an Expert Panel on Respite Research to develop recommendations to build a stronger evidence base for respite.  The Expert Panel report can be found here. 

Join Us!

You may join us online by paying with a credit card at our Membership site. Or, if you prefer, use the printable membership form to join the ARCH network or to renew your membership. Print the form and send it with your membership donation to: ARCH c/o Families and Communities Rising, 4220 NC-55 | Suite 300 | Durham, North Carolina 27713. Any questions? Email them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..