A remarkable man named Jean Vanier died Monday at age 90 in France, after spending a lifetime improving the lives of hundreds of thousands of people with Down Syndrome and various other learning disabilities.

It was way back in 1964 that Vanier asked two disabled people to leave state institutions and live in a family-like community that would be more sensitive to their needs and untapped abilities in Trosly-Breuil, France. The idea was to mix those with disabilities and those without and to use “transforming relationships” to “make known the gifts of people who have intellectual disabilities.” The community, called L’Arche, worked well and, under Vanier’s leadership, the idea spread. Today, L’Arche boasts 154 communities worldwide, stretching from Uganda to New Zealand to 18 L’Arche homes in the U.S.