Today, Rauch serves over 1,400 children, adults and families. They provide services to Clark, Floyd, Harrison, Scott, Washington, Jefferson and Jackson counties.
For children, they provide their first steps program, developmental preschool and a seasonal camp all for youth with disabilities. Their adult programs include the Fairmont Neighborhood Center, employment services, community living, Rauch Industries and housing.
“ Rauch has definitely helped me get more skills in terms of different jobs that could be outside the community that I might need,” said Cole Davis, a client of Rauch for six years and an employee.
Davis has been diagnosed with ADHD, OCD and is on the autism spectrum. Before coming to Rauch, he was not looking for employment due to losing his mother and other ongoing issues he was living with at the time.
“ That just made it really difficult to navigate through, especially not knowing growing up that you were disabled or adopted,” he said.“ That really takes a toll.”
The working environment at Rauch Industries is a friendly one and that makes the employees strive to do their best and succeed.
Davis does rotary work and makes parts for Toyota. He said that he is a very hard worker and gets a lot done within a day.
When he first started at Rauch, it was difficult for him to adjust to the environment.
“ It was quite difficult at the start because having ADHD I was always distracted and I was never really fond of work and that kind of stuff,” Davis said.
Going into this position, Davis went in knowing that he had to be there to start earn a living. He did not think about if he would enjoy it or not. Now he enjoys what he does and the people he works with.
Through Rauch, Davis has been able to get the job skills he needs and is working towards supportive living. His ultimate goal is to be independent, he wants a community job and to be able to support himself in the community.
“( Organizations like Rauch are important) because it can definitely help them get a better idea as to what they might be going into whether they can understand it or not, it would really help them understand,” Davis said.
Carry Larson is a Rauch client that has been contracted through the organization to work at the Census Bureau in Jeffersonville. She has a learning disability that puts her reading and math skills at the level of a first or second grader and she has some physical disabilities as well.
She first learned about Rauch by visiting her grandparents’ house growing up. Larson’ s grandparents used to live in the industrial area of New Albany and she got to see the organization grow.
At the Census Bureau, she is a janitor. Larson cleans the rooms and says that the people there are nice and that it is a great place to work. Before coming to Rauch, she had been let go by a previous employer.
“ They let me go because of my learning disability and they thought that I wasn’ t good enough for that spot,” Larson said.“ They let me go … I told my job coach that and she says‘ Let me find a job that’ s suitable for you.’”
Her job coach put out Larson’ s resume and applications to some places, then they found Rauch. Larson took the opportunity and has been there for almost 16 years now.
Once she started, Larson got her mother and two of her three daughters to join Rauch and it became a family affair for them. Rauch has helped her family in ways she could have never thought.
Funding cuts threaten services
Despite the success stories, there are issues for the organization.
Cole Davis cuts wire to be put in one of the panels that Rauch makes for Toyota.
Larson wants people from Congress to come and visit Rauch and meet all the clients to see what Rauch and other organizations are doing for those who live with disabilities. She thinks that it would open their eyes and see what the clients can do.
16 DIVERSITY July | August 2025