NILES — Manda Knox and her husband, Dave, try to host or donate to a charitable event each year through their body shop business, Knox Kustoms at 1261 S. 9th St. This year, they wanted to do something more personal.

So did Take 2, a musical duo composed of area residents Matt Onken and Jon Sherwood. Take 2 approached the Knoxes, asking them to help host an event to raise money for the Nikki Mitchell Foundation, a pancreatic cancer research and patient assistance nonprofit.

The two groups decided to host a poker chip run from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 24. All proceeds from the Cancer DOES Suck Poker Chip Run will go to the Nikki Mitchell Foundation.

“Everybody knows about cancer. They know the main ones, the ones that everyone usually supports,” Knox said. “We just want to raise awareness and draw support and hopefully make a difference.”

Knox said she is excited to partner with the foundation.

“The Nikki Mitchell Foundation is really cool because they help a lot, and it’s not just a foundation where they get money for research. The money that they get, they use to help people.”

The foundation helps individuals buy necessities and comforts during their cancer treatments. Between 2013 and 2018, the foundation has helped 76 cancer patients in 12 states.

Both Onken and Sherwood lost their fathers to pancreatic cancer. The Knoxes have friends who have lost their fathers to it, too. It was their friends that encouraged the husband-wife duo to host the event.

“They were wanting to do something to raise money for awareness and help with research, so we just stepped in and tried to help them,” Knox said. “We’ve had a little experience with events.”

She and her husband have previously helped sponsor the Burn Run, a motorcycle-guided ride. Its proceeds go to Great Lakes Burn Camp, a retreat for children who are burn survivors.

The poker chip event is similar to a poker run, where participants go to predetermined destinations, usually businesses, and pick up cards for a poker hand. The participant with the best hand usually wins a prize.

Knox wanted to get rid of the limitations of the event that she said did not make it as fun. After the first few card pick-ups, most know whether they have a poor hand or not. So, she turned the poker cards to colored poker chips, which will be collected and scored at the end.

“Nobody is going to have any idea whether they have a good hand or a bad hand until the end, so we hope that will just keep people more interested,” she said.

For a minimum $20 donation, participants can depart in their vehicles from Knox Kustoms and drive to five bars or roadhouses in Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties. The trip will conclude at Front Street Pizza Pub on Front Street, where raffles and three musical groups will perform. Accompanying Take 2 in performance will be Las Vegas hard rock group Stoney Curtis Band, and Niles-based metalcore band 5th & Syc.

First, second and third place finishers will receive $300, $200 and $100 cash prizes, courtesy of Michigan Motorsports, Encore Auto and Rock Auto Service, respectively.

Headings on flyers for the event state the poker chip run is the “first annual.” The phrase hints at more events are to come, and Knox hopes they do.

“There’s never an end for cancer research needs,” she said.