Benches Installed Along Rails To Trails From Parker To Foxburg

The Allegheny Valley Trails Assn. (AVTA) and the City of Parker recently placed three new benches along the walking - biking trail from Parker to Foxburg.  Funding was supplied by the Parker City Revitalization Corporation (PCRC) and a local Foxburg member of the AVTA.

(Photo right: Bob Amsler & Marilyn McCall – Parker City Revitalization Corp. (PCRC); Sue Hilton, Board Member, Allegheny Valley Trails Assn. (AVTA); Pam Gordon, Parker resident.)

AVTA volunteers assembled and installed the benches.  The benches were made by DuMor, Inc. near State College, PA.  Parker resident Pam Gordon got the project going by urging the AVTA to put benches along the trail to help those who need to take breaks due to age or physical condition.  Health authorities argue that walking is perhaps the best exercise, but everyone needs a break now and then.  Even those bikers who go 50-100 miles a day, or hikers that walk for hours, will sometimes relax on a comfortable bench and soak in the views along the Allegheny River.
Parker officials Bob Amsler and Marilyn McCall helped with PCRC funding, and they agreed that these benches will be enjoyed by many residents for many years to come.  They encourage all Parker residents to get their family together, take a walk, and enjoy the river and scenery in our area.  AVTA Board Member Sue Hilton said that the AVTA is delighted that the trail has been extended from Foxburg to Parker, and hopefully will be developed further north and south.  She often is on the trail, and is happy to see that many local residents walk and bike on the trail.  Foxburg AVTA member Bob Jennings helped on the project.  As the trail gradually is extended, he expects that we will become a hot destination for hikers and bikers, such as has happened from Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C.  Increased use of the trail then will bring more economic activity and jobs to all of the towns along the trail, including Parker and Foxburg.  He urges others to join the AVTA and help support similar projects along the trail.  For further information on the AVTA, go to www.avta-trails.org ; for the health benefits of walking, go to www.everybodywalks.org .