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North End Wellness Coalition (2020) Print
2020 AARP Community Challenge Grantee
Project Category
Transportation
└ Trails
└ Trails
To encourage residents to walk and socialize, the North End Wellness Coalition installed seven benches along the North Quarter Pathways, an urban walking trail in Grand Rapids' Creston neighborhood. The ADA-compliant seating is designed to accommodate residents with limited mobility. To promote walking on the Pathways' five trail loops, the Coalition also founded an Active Living Team, which is working to plan community events and programming. Project organizers say working with City staff to install the benches laid the ground for other improvements throughout Grand Rapids, including upgrades to local parks and new scooter and bike racks.
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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.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
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.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Jackson, MS
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021
Project Category: Trails
Description: 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.
Nearby AARP Community Challenge Projects
Grand Rapids, MI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023
Project Category: Community Gardens
Description: Long Michigan winters left older adults at Reflections Apartments isolated and unable to garden, a key source of connection and activity. Dwelling Place built an ADA-compliant greenhouse through five volunteer events, engaging many community members and local partners. The space extends the growing season and supports a seed-starting program led by residents. Older adults now plan to grow culturally relevant vegetables and share stories tied to gardening traditions, turning the greenhouse into a year-round hub for wellness and social connection.
Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.
Grand Rapids, MI
AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2026
Project Category: Innovative home maintenance, repair and support services
Description: The project will cover the expense of urgent repairs in mobile homes for older adults, including heating, plumbing and accessibility upgrades. This support will help residents avoid unsafe conditions and remain in stable, affordable housing.
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