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Fort Scott, KS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: Fort Scott's Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes mission is to share stories of lesser-known great Americans through project-based learning. The Center created a downtown park next to its museum facilities. The new space features six narrative boards, which commemorate the contributions of individual heroes. Students in grades four through twelve researched and chose the subjects, who include scientists who discovered dinosaur bones and measured the extent of the universe, as well as a Navajo code breaker, a pioneer of modern education and others. Project organizers say the story rails will allow visitors to learn about historical figures outside the nearby museum's operating hours.
Casco, ME
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: This project will upgrade the Mayberry Hill Preserve trail to make it accessible for older adults, young people, and families. The new 0.6-mile loop trail will feature ADA-compliant benches and a crushed gravel surface.
Union City, GA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Park enhancements
Description: This project will turn an unused wooded lot into a centrally-located, easily-accessible dog park with accessible gates, benches and a gazebo to provide a gathering spot for older neighborhood residents.
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Lynchburg, VA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: To organizers with the Downtown Lynchburg Association, an underused, dead-end street had potential to draw visitors downtown. The Association transformed the space into Art Alley -- a vibrant, outdoor art gallery. To activate the space, volunteers covered the pavement in turquoise, orange, pink and green paint. They also set up string lights overhead to provide illumination. Finally, they created the Spark Joy Gallery by installing panels that display digital artworks. Project organizers say the placemaking effort has since inspired nearby property owners to spruce up their building facades, and the Art Alley has become a must-see for tourists passing through town.
Lynchburg, VA
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025
Project Category: Public space activation
Description: This wayfinding project will help residents and the school community navigate the shared public space. It aims to activate the underutilized schoolyard, fostering intergenerational engagement.
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