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Jackson Heart Foundation (2021) Print
2021 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Transportation
└ Trails
└ Trails
The City of Jackson is working to develop the Museum Trail -- a four-mile, multi-use path designed to improve community health and wellness, connect areas of interest within the community and promote active transportation. Building on this work, the Jackson Heart Foundation improved wayfinding along the corridor by installed railhead and mile markers. Organizers say the signage helps visitors understand where the trail begins and ends and provides them with information about ongoing work to improve the path. Volunteers also created a mural at the trail's entrance. And to promote the trail, project organizers launched a new website and offered branded tote bags for donors.
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Wilton, NH
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020
Project Category: Trails
Description: The Town of Wilton built ADA-compliant walkways along the bank of Souhegan River. The walkways connect restaurants and a veterans park to Wilton's downtown core. Part of planned improvements to the Wilton Riverwalk, the new walkways transformed a preexisting walking path into downtown's first accessible pedestrian route. After the Town secured funding for the improvements, a local telecom company donated an easement for the project. Organizers say Wilton is working to boost its local economy and position itself as a place where people can come to enjoy shopping, ecotourism and cultural events. Part of that effort is remaking the downtown into a walkable environment that caters to pedestrians instead of cars. Since then, the Town has continued revitalization efforts, and recently added a downtown marketplace for local artists and musicians.
East Hartford, CT
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2019
Project Category: Trails
Description: To improve its South Meadows Greenway trail network, Goodwin University created a wheelchair accessible picnic area. The University installed four picnic tables with seating in a location overlooking the Connecticut River. In collaboration with the East Hartford Senior Center, university officials then hosted trail walks with the goal of increasing healthy outdoor recreation for residents of the largely industrial City of East Hartford. Goodwin's campus is located on a former EPA-designated brownfield site, which the school cleaned up. Through its improvements to trails, the university hopes to improve livability in East Hartford.
Navassa, NC
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Trails
Description: Brunswick County's older population needed safe outdoor spaces for exercise and social connection while preserving Gullah Geechee heritage. The project launched a demonstration trail with ADA-compliant features, benches, markers and cultural storyboards, unveiled during a ribbon-cutting event. The effort sparked regional collaboration and a feasibility study for a 14-mile corridor linking historic sites and greenways. One attendee said the celebration "brought tears to my eyes and a smile to my face," reflecting its cultural and community significance.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Jackson, MS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2022
Project Category: Trails
Description: Jackson's Museum Trail lacked inviting spaces for rest and social connection. The foundation added plazas with benches, bike racks, pet stations, trash cans and murals under the Fortification Street bridge. This helped create vibrant stops along the trail. These upgrades made the trail more welcoming for older adults and families and helped secure approval for future phases. One resident said that he was so excited about the transformation along the newly accessible trail, and expressed how much he now enjoys walking along it with his family.
Jackson, MS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024
Project Category: Trails
Description: Extreme heat and limited amenities on Jackson's Museum Trail made outdoor exercise risky for older adults, especially in neighborhoods lacking recreational spaces. To address this, the foundation installed two shaded resting areas with benches, bike racks and trash receptacles. These were placed near a gateway sign and native garden, creating inviting spots for trail users. These additions encourage more frequent use and provide safe places to pause during long walks. "The new benches were much needed... now I can sit and watch people and wildlife," said one resident, underscoring the project's role in fostering independence and community connection.
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