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NILES — A local nonprofit was able to bring the community together with its Memorial Day event.

Niles nonprofit Remarkable Inc. and wear blue: run to remember, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring fallen service members through active remembrance, teamed up to bring a free Memorial Day 5K run/walk to Niles on Monday. A nationwide endeavor, the Niles event was the only Michigan location.

The race began at the Riverside Park Veterans Memorial at 220 S. Front St. and took place before the scheduled Memorial Day parade. Participants were provided with the name of a fallen service member who has given his or her life since the first days of the Vietnam War. 

The event was organized by Remarkable Inc. President Melanie Kennedy, whose husband Don is a Marine Corps veteran. Kennedy said she was contacted by wear blue about organizing a race in Niles.

“It’s humbling that people would come out and spend their Memorial Day morning doing this,” Kennedy said. “It is very important to some people, like my husband. It’s nice for him to be able to do this.”

Kennedy hopes to make the race an annual event.

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