Swing music started around the time that a footbridge was built to connect both sides of Cambridge City’s Creitz Park in the 1920s. Residents are glad to see that the bridge is swinging again.
Many students have used the swinging bridge over the Whitewater River on their way to and from nearby Lincoln Middle/High School and Western Wayne Elementary.
The Aug. 12 floodwaters destroyed the bridge and covered it with grasses and other debris.
Since then, an Indiana family business that has done a lot of work in Wayne County generously rebuilt the bridge.
Milestone Contractors has paved many local roads and is currently working on the Revive Interstate 70 project that is intended to improve transportation across the region.
In January, the family business received the Achievement of Excellence award for large businesses at Wayne County Area Chamber of Commerce’s annual dinner for what chamber officials described as maintaining quality while playing a critical role in shaping the county’s infrastructure.
Town leaders say seeing pieces of Cambridge City like the bridge being restored is a welcome reminder of what can happen when residents and businesses come together to support the community.
New township connection
One more township trustee is available to help residents in need of flood relief.
Residents of Harrison Township (Jacksonburg) can contact James Fagan at 765-994-5536 by appointment.
Wayne County Foundation’s Wayne County Cares fund still can assist residents with flood repairs and rebuilding. Township trustees are administering that program.
Continuing contacts for affected townships include Abington, 614-402-2375; Center, 765-855-5176; Green (Williamsburg), 765-969-5094; Jackson (Cambridge City), 765-478-4620; Jefferson (Hagerstown), 765-489-4824; Washington (Milton), 765-462-9964; and Wayne (Richmond), 765-973-9392.
For more information, visit forwardwaynecounty.org/community-links/.
Free counseling available
Indiana flood survivors facing ongoing financial strain and personal trauma can still sign up for free online or in-person counseling sessions through Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis. Services are available to anyone impacted, including first responders and service providers.
Clients must sign up by Dec. 31 to receive up to five free sessions.
Counseling is provided with sensitivity to the client’s faith needs or preference for a nonreligious setting.
Those interested can visit cts.edu/counseling-center or call 317-924-5205, indicating they’re seeking disaster recovery support.
Thrift store reopens
Hagerstown Thrift Store is now open for business in its new location, 18 E. Main St., Hagerstown, after extensive preparations.
The previous location further east on Indiana 38 was damaged with more than 5 feet of water inside. Neighbors including Nettle Creek Hardware and Hagerstown Food Market faced similar damage.
On Friday, thrift store leaders gratefully asked for a temporary pause in donations, saying they were “completely inundated.”
Evening hours have been added. Current hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays; 2-7 p.m. Wednesdays; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays.
As donations are needed, boxed items may be placed in bins behind the shop when it’s closed.
For more information, call 765-530-8094.
Crafts scare up donations
Wayne County Sheriff’s Office’s annual auction of pumpkins decorated by its staff raised $570 for Wayne County Foundation’s Wayne County Cares Fund.
WCSO’s administrative team presented a check to Rebecca Gilliam, WCF’s executive director, on Oct. 21.
A version of this article appeared in the October 28 2026 print edition of the Western Wayne News.
