most 23 year olds don't own their own home.

Our History

In 1963 the Metropolitan ARC was formed as a fundraising arm of the local Arc and ACL chapters of Metro Denver.

In the 1960’s, parents of children with developmental disabilities were faced with a monumental task; raising the necessary funds to provide an improvement in quality of life of those with developmental disabilities. Previously, parents had only one option for their children; send them to an institution where the quality of life was less than stellar. While this was the ‘norm’ for many families, there was a group of parents that wanted more options for their children. These parents assisted in the founding of a grass roots movement to improve the quality of life for individuals and families with developmental disabilities (today known as The Arc and ACL of Boulder County). With the need for funds still looming, the Metropolitan ARC was formed to be a fundraising mechanism for The Arc and ACL’s through operations of thrift stores selling useable goods donated by generous Coloradoans.

The first retail location opened that year on South Broadway under the name of "Value Village Thrift Store". The proceeds generated through the store went directly into action by funding the early Arc chapter’s advocacy work. As time moved forward, more stores were added as well as additional Arc chapters that were in need of monetary support. Currently, there are 18 arc Thrift stores along the front range from Fort Collins to Pueblo. We employ over 650 people and serve a population of over three million in our stores.

arc Thrift Stores has a unique inventory capturing model. We created a telemarketing team to solicit donations of clothing, furniture, and household items for our stores. Our telemarketing agents (known as Jane and James to the community) phone up to 1.5 million households every 5 weeks to solicit for donations. Our community has embraced the ‘Jane’ calls and through their loyal and generous giving over the years, significant inventory has been collected and sold. This outpouring of support from the community has allowed us to distribute over $11,000,000 to the local Arc and ACL chapter in the last 5 years. The promise made to the Denver public over 40 years ago still resounds as loudly as it did then. "…if you support us with your donations, we will help serve individuals and their families with developmental disabilities."

In 2001, another fundraising avenue was formed, Vehicles for Charity. VFC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Metropolitan ARC and began as another way to raise funds for the Arc and ACL chapters. While M.A.R.C./arc Thrift Stores had informally taken vehicles for themselves for a number of years, it wasn’t until other local non-profits called us for assistance that the (interior) light clicked. Today, over 350 charities nationwide, trust our program to accept donations on their behalf.

arc Thrift Stores provide funding to enhance the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities in our community.