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Dick Reimers began his employment in September of 1988. He was the second full time administrative professional directing the agency since its inception in 1962. Dick holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration.
Dick was born and raised in Ottawa, Illinois, a community rich in agriculture, located on the Illinois River off Interstate 80. While attending Ottawa Township High School he participated in sports. After graduation from high school in 1971 he was fortunate to receive an athletic scholarship to Illinois State University where he ran cross country and track.
Besides competing in intercollegiate athletics while at Illinois State, Reimers began work in 1974 for a new social service agency called Kaleidoscope. His first position was as a child care worker, working in a small group home. He advanced to supervisor of the home in a matter of months. Dick eventually administered several group homes for Kaleidoscope in the Bloomington-Normal community until early 1979.
After a short stint in the community mental health field, Dick took the position of Residential Services Administrator at MARC Center and the Bloomington Housing Authority where he engineered an innovative and massive housing development effort. He built MARC Center's residential programs from the "ground up." Five apartment complexes were built consisting of 50 living units financed by "Conventional Public Housing" (HUD) funds. The first Illinois "Certificate of Need" approval and subsequent development of an Intermediate Care Facility for the Developmentally Disabled was also secured. Numerous other housing and associated supports were developed by Reimers while in Bloomington.
Blare House, located in the northwest Chicago suburbs, employed Reimers to be their Executive Director in 1986. The agency was in its infancy. During the two years Reimers was director, a HUD 202, Section 8 project was opened. Various fund-raising activities were initiated along with the development of a plan to return children with Autism, who had been placed out of state, to Illinois.
Since 1988 Reimers has been Executive Director of ARC Communtiy Support Systems providing services to 94 Illinois counties. ARC Community Support Systems provides services to more than 3,000 infants, children, adults and seniors with disabilities or delays annually in four areas to include: Advocacy, Housing, Employment and Family Support. The agency has developed a reputation for its strong advocacy activities, especially in the area of education. ARC Community Support Systems has also been aggressive in the areas of Community Employment, Public Awareness and Children's Services.
Dick resides in Effingham with his wife, Deb Niebrugge, and has one daughter, Laura.
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