Zully J.F. Alvarado moved from Chicago to Gary, looked out from her wheelchair and gazed upon Marquette Lagoon, rimmed by Lake Michigan dunes and oak forests, now outside of her home window. She wanted to kayak. Never mind that she had a dreadful fear of the water, not being able to swim. Why not her? In fact, why not Gary?
Her persistence and help from the Northwest Indiana Paddling Association led to an ADA-accessible canoe and kayak launch in 2016 and a succession of evening group paddles that, she says, became a âgreat equalizer.â
The ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) launch provides a sliding bench where you scoot from your wheelchair into a kayak, then pull the boat into the water. But it also saves aged and weakened knees and hips from fully crouching to the ground.
âIâll see you in heaven.â
It was the last thing Al Braccolino, 90, of Crown Point, told one of his daughters as paramedics loaded him into an ambulance Nov. 16. COVID-19 forced him into the final fight of his life.
Ten days later, the chair Al usually occupied at the Thanksgiving table would sit empty. The husband to his wife of 70 years, father of three and grandfather of six died on the holiday.
Alâs daughter, Sandra Noe, was herself suffering from COVID-19, which she contracted while caring for her sick parents, when the virus forced Alâs hospitalization.
Noe, 66, is no stranger to helping elderly shut-ins weather isolation.
ADA accessible launches open in LaPorte and Elkhart for more paddling access southbendtribune.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from southbendtribune.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The 50 Most Popular National Parks in America
By Hannah Lang, Stacker News
On 5/15/21 at 8:00 AM EDT
Lucky-photographer / Shutterstock
Approximately 237 million people visited American national parks in 2020, representing a 28 percent year-over-year decrease attributed to the coronavirus pandemic. To determine the most popular national parks in the United States, Stacker compiled data from the National Park Service on the number of recreational visits each site had in 2020.
President Woodrow Wilson in 1916 signed the act creating the National Park Service to leave natural and historic phenomenons unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations. Since then, our national parks have welcomed visitors from around the world to experience some of the best the country has to offer and showcase the country s natural beauty and cultural heritage.
Major effort underway to protect Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk after years of erosion
Major effort underway to protect Portage Lakefront after years of erosion
It’s one of the jewels of the Indiana Dunes National Park, but it’s been battered by historically high water levels on Lake Michigan.
PORTAGE, Ind. - It’s one of the jewels of the Indiana Dunes National Park, but it’s been battered by historically high water levels on Lake Michigan.
Now, a major effort is underway to protect the Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk in Portage, Indiana.
The ground literally shook as tons of freshly quarried limestone were dumped near the waters edge on Wednesday.