Communities around Michigan have embraced the original intent of Labor Day as more than a holiday that marks the end of summer.

Peter J. McGuire, one of the men credited as a “father” of Labor Day, wrote of the holiday:

“No festival of martial glory or warrior’s renown is this; no pageant pomp of war-like conquest, no glory of fratricidal strife attend this day. It is dedicated to peace, civilization and the triumphs of industry. It is a demonstration of fraternity and the harbinger of a better age – a more chivalrous time, when labor shall be best honored and well rewarded.”

In that spirit, Labor Day events are scheduled around Michigan on Monday, Sept. 3. Make plans to celebrate Labor’s Day in your area.

Detroit: For the building trades, a line of march on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 3, will proceed as usual east along Michigan Avenue towards Campus Martius downtown. The building trades will line up before the parade, as usual, along Trumbull Avenue south of Michigan Avenue. The parade will start at 9 a.m. The parade’s theme: “Protect Working Families,” a nod to the petition effort this year to enshrine worker-friendly language into the Michigan Constitution.

Following is the parade lineup along Trumbull, with the lead unions closest to Michigan Ave.:

• Elevator Constructors
• Heat and Frost Insulators
• IBEW
• Painters/Glaziers
• Laborers
• Iron Workers
• Bricklayers & Allied Crafts
• Cement Masons/Plasterers
• Roofers
• Boilermakers
• United Association of Pipe Trades
• Carpenters/Millwrights
• Sheet Metal Workers
• Operating Engineers
• Teamsters

Grand Rapids: For the third year the Grand Rapids Labor Fest will be held at Ah-Nab-Awen Park near the Gerald Ford Presidential Museum, off of Pearl Street, one block east of U.S. 131. The day’s events will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Labor Day around the “Spirit of Solidarity” monument in the park.

Activities include free admission to the Gerald Ford Presidential Museum, live music, food vendors and a beer tent, kids’ activities, labor displays and an antique American-made car and motorcycle show.

Ishpeming: The 23rd Annual Labor Day Festival will be held in Ishpeming on Labor Day. The parade, rally and picnic are at the Cliffs Shaft Museum (Marquette Range Iron Mining Heritage Theme Park) near Lake Bancroft. Parade set up is at 9 am. The parade starts at 11am. Total parade length is 1.1 miles. The theme for this year is “Vote Yes for Michigan Families”.

Muskegon: Muskegon: The West Michigan United Labor Day Parade. Staging will take place from 9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. The parade starts at 11 a.m. Meet at Heritage Landing and take the shuttle to the parade route.  There will be a picnic lunch at Heritage Landing after the parade.

St. Ignace: The annual five-mile walk over the Mackinac Bridge begins at 7 a.m. on Labor Day. The walk starts in St. Ignace, and shuttle buses ($5) are available for the return trip from Mackinaw City. The Labor Day Bridge walk brings more than 70,000 people to the area.