Abbeville Council on Aging walking trail is best kept secret in Abbeville

It is the best kept secret in Abbeville.
That secret is located behind the Vermilion Council on Aging Building on Graceland Street. For the last couple of years there has been a walking track behind the Council on Aging Building that is only accessed through the Council on Aging Building.
The hours are from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Anyone 60 years old and above, can use the track and picnic tables. It is fenced in and the only way into the park is by going through the council on aging building. The outside public can not just walk into the park and begin walking or hanging out. Everyone has to enter through the council on aging building.
Lois Bodin, the executive director for the council on aging, wants Abbeville residents to know the park is safe and there are video cameras watching everything.
“I am attempting to notify the elderly of our area that the park is theirs to use...whether it be for a morning walk, an early afternoon picnic or just a small gathering of friends for a chat,” said Bodin. “This park has been in existence for many years and has never been utilized to its fullest. It has now been made safe for our elderly (people 60 years of age and above,) by having locked gates and security cameras mounted in various places able to record all activity. However, access to the park is only available through our facility.”
Bodin recently spoke to the Abbeville Rotarians about the council on aging and what services they provide. A big part of her speech was about the park.
• The council on aging has been in Vermilion Parish since 1974.
• There are 4 council on aging locations in Vermilion: Main Senior Building on Graceland (893-2563) in Abbeville; Kaplan Senior Center on Cushing Ave. (634-6011), Erath Center on North Lahasky (937-5559) and Gueydan Senior Center on Wilkson St. (536-900).
• There are 10,498 elderly people, 60 and above, who live in Vermilion Parish.
• 18 percent of the population are 60 years old and older in Vermilion Parish.
• 99 percent of the elderly in Vermilion Parish qualify to utilize the council on aging services.