RAPID RIVER, Mich. (WZMQ) – A new amenity at Rapid River Falls Park honors a late resident who spent years enjoying the park’s beauty.
On Tuesday, the family of Joyce Marie McCarty dedicated a bench overlooking the water in her memory overlooking the water. Her relatives came from as far as Downstate South Lyon to see the new bench and to reminisce about the days McCarty spent there watching her children and grandchildren play.
“She used to sit here when I was a kid in the ’50s and drink Stroh’s,” laughed Jim Watson, McCarty’s son. “I sat here with my kids, my grandkids, and on Labor Day, I was up here with my great-grandkids. We picked this spot because of the shade tree. In the summertime when it’s hot, you can sit in the shade. It’s for everybody to enjoy, not just us.”
“A lot of memories growing up here,” McCarty’s daughter Wanda Curtis added. “This was our go-to spot for the whole family. Everybody would come here on weekends, play on the playground, and go in the water. We’re just over the moon.”
The family was inspired to dedicate the bench in anticipation of what would have been McCarty’s 100th birthday, April 24, 2028. They were pleasantly surprised to learn that the process would only take a few months.
“We’re honored to have this bench here that other people can enjoy,” said Delta County Parks Manager Heather LeDuc. “It is really going to be a special place. For them to want to share that with other people, that’s what our community is about and what the parks are about.”
The family inspired the Delta County Parks Department to create a bench dedication program for parks and forestlands throughout the county. The program will officially go before the Parks and Recreation Commission this week. If it goes through, community members will also be able to dedicate swings, waste receptacles, and other amenities.
To learn more about the Delta County Parks bench dedication program, visit deltacountyparks.com, call (906) 786-1020, or visit the office at Pioneer Trail Park in Gladstone.
