Niles will celebrate Memorial Day this holiday weekend with special services on Sunday and the annual parade taking place on Monday.

Memorial Day Services at Mission Hills Cemetery on M-51 North will take place Sunday at 11 a.m.

Sponsored by American Legion Post 26, Commander Kenneth Wolf of the Niles Post will speak during the service.

A second service will be held at 1 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial in Riverfront Park on Main Street.

The annual Niles Memorial Day Parade will be held Monday with line-up at 9 a.m. and the parade beginning at 10 a.m. sharp.

Following the parade, a service will be held at Silverbrook Cemetery. A wreath will be placed in the Veterans Circle by the cemetery’s cannon and Pastor Jeff Whittaker of the Michiana Christian Embassy will give the opening prayer. Whittaker will also serve as speaker of this year’s service, with Dorothy McLaughlin Auxiliary Chaplin providing the closing prayer.

Music will be provided by the Brandywine High School band.

Click here for full article at the Niles Daily Star website.

The following is an excerpt from the May 30, 2010 South Bend Tribune website.

By SHERRY VAN ARSDALL
Tribune Staff Writer

NILES — Until three years ago, Gerhard Gipner, of California, said he was under the impression that he was the only Gipner in the United States.

Then a relative from Germany was doing genealogy research and came across the name John Gipner.

"I was asked to do some further research because they didn't speak or read English," Gerhard said.

And what Gerhard discovered in his research, he shared with the crowd at the gravesite garden dedication for John Gipner Saturday at Silverbrook Cemetery.

"I had no idea one of my ancestors had made a name for himself as a famous gardener in Niles, Michigan," he said. "I am so excited and happy to be here and see that his legacy lives on."

He attended the dedication with his wife Margrit.

"We're just honored to be relatives," she said. "I'm just related by marriage."

Click here for the full article at the South Bend Tribune website.

The Four Flags Garden Club of the City of Niles cordially invites you to be present for the Dedication of the Gipner Grave Site Garden at Silverbrook Cemetery, located at 1400 East Main Street, Saturday May 29, 2010 at 1 p.m.  RSVP 269.648.2022.  

Following the dedication ceremony, attendees will be shuttled to the Niles Amtrak Depot for a Reception.

Attendees are requested to arrive at the Niles Amtrak Depot 600 Dey Street (off North Fifth Street) at 12:30 p.m. for complimentary shuttle service to Silverbrook due to parking constraints.

 For more about who John Gipner is, see the article at the Niles Daily Star website.