On the corner of Third and I Street in Niles sits what may be Fremont’s smallest park, just 250 square feet of carefully tended ground beneath towering trees. Here, a white bench and picnic table rest behind a picket fence, wind chimes singing softly in the breeze.
Passersby stop to rest, meditate or share a meal. What they may not know at first is that this peaceful spot exists because of profound loss.
Gloria and George Gates created this memorial park to honor Gloria’s three children, all of whom died young: Steven, murdered at age 19; Scott, lost to cancer in 1999 at age 34; and Nikki, who died of cancer in 2013 at age 49…