Hundreds ride to raise money for veterans & honor fallen soldier - KWWL.com

Hundreds of motorcyclists hit the highway Saturday afternoon in honor of a fallen Eastern Iowa soldier. Family members and friends of Specialist Donny Nichols organized the SPC Donny Nichols 1st Annual Memorial Ride & Poker Run in the soldier's honor.

The Shell Rock native was killed in April 2011 while serving in Afghanistan with the Waterloo-based 1-133rd Ironman Battalion.

"As far as dealing with it, you never forget. You never get over being sad. But there's so much to be thankful for. And so much life to live. That's the important thing," said Nichols' aunt, Diana McCready.

This year's poker run is a fundraiser to build a veterans memorial in Shell Rock. Within the first hour, they'd already met their goal -- raising more than $8,000. Nichols' brother, Joe, said he continues to be overwhelmed by support -- both for his brother and now for the veterans memorial

"It's just making the community stronger, I think. And even if people aren't in the ride, they see us and they know," said Joe Nichols.

The family plans to make this an annual event, and choose a new cause each year. Next year, they hope to raise money for a proposed veterans memorial in Janesville.