MONROEVILLE RECEIVES TRAIL ANGEL AWARD

Jennifer Yoquelet and the Monoroeville Community Park Board received the Trail Angels Award from Adventuring Cycling Association. Charles Pace, from Columbus, Ohio and a representative of Adventure Cycling presented the award on December 6, 2005. Adventure Cyclist magazine provides its readers with bicycle route development and mapping with 33,000 miles of National Bike Route networks, which includes two routes that go through Monroeville.

The Community Park Board of Monroeville, Indiana, a town situated at the convergence of the North Lakes and Northern Tier Bicycle Routes built a layover station for bicyclists where the cyclist can rest, enjoy a free shower, washing machines and a climate controlled place to take a break from the rigors of biking and camping. It has turned into a sort of bicycling oasis in the Midwest.

The award was presented to the Monroeville Community Park Board in a special ceremony at the Monroeville Community Park Pavilion, located at 421 Monroe Street in Monroeville.

Jerry Marquardt, a retired Dana Corporation Employee and a Monroeville Community Park Board member helped renovate the cyclist facility. He said, “We wanted the rest of the country to know what Midwest hospitality is all about.”

The Monroeville Park Board was nominated for the award by Adventure Cycling member Gary Scarcella of West Granby, Connecticut, who related this story: “While on a bicycle tour last summer, I was intrigued by the Monroeville accommodation listed as a ‘special indoor shelter for cyclists with shower, washer and dryer, free.’ I thought it would be great to have a break from camping, but…all of my expectations were exceeded when I arrived and board secretary Jennifer Yoquelet gave me the keys to the indoor shelter and a tour of their Community Center. The first surprise was that the building was air conditioned, which was a real treat during the summer’s heat wave. They also provided a TV and VCR with numerous movie videos, a radio, books, magazines, full kitchen, and cots to sleep on. After signing their logbook, I took some time to read the entries from other touring cyclists. They get several cyclists each week and sometimes even provide shelter to church groups doing bicycle tours. Everyone was delighted with this oasis on their journey through the heartland of our country. This is America at its best, and I wish more communities would follow the lead of the town of Monroeville.”

“The phrase ‘Trail Angel’ refers to a generous individual or group encountered during a bicycle tour that enhances the cycl-tourist’s experience, by helping the cyclist as a form of goodwill,” Pace said. “The award is named for June Curry, the legendary Cookie Lady of Afton, Virginia, who has been assisting cyclists on the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail since 1976.”

Adventure Cycling is the largest recreational cycling association in the United States. The association’s mission is to inspire people of all ages to travel by bicycle. Its 42,000 members reside primarily in the United States and Canada. Thousands of cyclists annually tour along segments of the association’s 33,023 mile National Bicycle Route Network, which includes three major transcontinental routes and three major north-south routes from Canada to Mexico. For information, call (800) 755-BIKE (2453), email info@adventurecycling.org, or visit www.adventurecycling.org