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NILES — A local business kicked off the summer with an event the entire family could enjoy.

Jessica Massey State Farm hosted its fourth annual Family Fun Event Sunday at Riverfront Park in downtown Niles. The free event featured food, music, bounce houses, face painting, games, plenty of water and more. According to Massey, more than 300 people attended the event. While down from last year’s numbers, volunteers felt the event was still a success considering the extreme heat experienced over the weekend.

“There were longer lines last year, so no one had to wait this year,” Massey said.

Massey founded her business in 2021 and plans two events per year – photos with Santa in December and the Family Fun Event in June – as a way to both engage the community and to provide free, family-friendly entertainment.

“We just want to do something fun in the community,” she said. “The better the community is, the better everyone. You give to the community and it gives right back so it goes both ways. That’s my philosophy in general as a business owner.”

For Massey, seeing the smiling faces having fun makes the event worthwhile every year.

“It’s amazing, it’s really fun to see the kids enjoy it and have fun,” she said. “I love that it’s free – there aren’t many free things around here. The festivals we have are great but you have to have 100 bucks to walk through the door in order to feed a family and play games. It’s just about doing something that everyone can afford.”