Virginia paper company partners with ARC to train, employ disabled people

From the Richmond Times-Dispatch. In the picture, Raymond Ricks rolls holiday wrapping paper for ink & Paper through a partnership with Greater Richmond ARC.

Wrapping paper is as much a part of the holiday season as mistletoe, menorahs and the mall.

It covers gifts, decorates plain brown boxes and winds up in torn-up wads across living-room floors.

But most people don't stop to consider where the paper comes from -- or whom it benefits.

One provider is Richmond-based Ink & Paper, a division of design firm Punch created in 2006. The firm designs, manufactures and distributes wrapping paper at retailers across the country.

Ink & Paper is working with Greater Richmond ARC, the nonprofit group that helps developmentally disabled adults find work and learn vocational skills. In this instance, the work is assembling rolls of wrapping paper.

By partnering with ARC, Punch has found a way to get a difficult job done while helping a local nonprofit.

Punch sends the paper to ARC in sheets. ARC employees roll it, affix the label and then shrink-wrap it.

The work is done through ARC Industrial Services, which does production work for companies, including labeling, water sealing and bulk-mail sorting.

For the nonprofit, working for Ink & Paper is a three-pronged win, said Mike Foley, business development director for ARC. It's an account that brings in money to help fund operations, it teaches clients work training and it promotes the group's cause.

"It's not a huge amount of profit for us, but the work activity trumps money," Foley said.

The label on each roll contains a message that tells buyers that ARC's mission is to "create life-fulfilling opportunities for individuals with mental retardation and developmental diseases."

Kelly Adams, one of Punch's founders, said the labels, which prominently feature Ink & Paper's name, help spread the word about what ARC does.

"That lets people around the country know about what they do and maybe get someone to consider using their services," she said.

Ink & Paper also creates and sells greeting cards, stationery and baby clothes. It sells products online and at more than 175 stores in about 25 states -- including five in the Richmond area.