Free
Living Life After 50
Golden Gala June 19
Allen County edition ReAChing FoRt WAyne And SuRRounding CountieS
June 2025
Vol. 38, No. 2
www.seniorlifenewspapers.com
NAMED AFTER CHIEF—Metea Park was named after the great Potawatomi leader, who established a village on the north side of Cedar Creek in the late 1700s.
Allen County Parks offer diverse experiences BY ROD KING Feature Writer Most people don’t realize that Allen County has five parks, which are operated and maintained by the county for use by its residents. Though the parks don’t offer senior-specific programs, it has a full schedule of activities senior citizens can participate in and enjoy. In addition, a senior annual pass costs just $30. What it does offer, and does it very well for seniors and all county residents, is the beauty and diversity of nature. The trails wind through forests, wetlands, marshes and sand dunes. The woods are full of a wide variety of trees, fields of wild flowers, animals, birds and insects. They’re all there for experiencing. Swimming, canoeing, fishing and picnicking are among the
DOWN BY THE WATER — A park visitor walks the trail along Cedar Creek, which is designated as a state scenic river. Photos by Ladasia Green and Paula Jarjour.
ways to enjoy the splendor of the natural surroundings. Best known of the parks is 605-acre Fox Island Park, located in the southwest corner of Allen County, off Yohne Road. Two hundred seventy acres are dedicated as a State Nature Preserve. That means it has unique plants, animals and/or geographic features making it special. Hundreds of species of animals and plants live here because of the relatively natural condition of the area and its special habitats. They range from marshes, seasonal ponds, wooded sand dunes, wetland forest, old fields and restored prairie. In addition, it has the largest contiguous forest in the county and a glacial sand dune, as well. It boasts a staffed, rustic nature center and more than seven miles of marked trails, Continued on page 3
A LEISURELY WALK— A trail in Metea Park is shaded by the forest canopy.