75,000 expected to attend Cleveland Marine Week events

CLEVELAND - Be prepared, Clevelanders. The U.S . Marine Corps is ready to invade Cleveland on Monday, with a week-long celebration of community, country and the Corps.

Cleveland and Brook Park are hosting the fourth annual Marine Week. From the Vietnam Wall replica in Voinovich Park to the vehicles and weaponry in Public Square, the Marines will make their presence known from June 11 to 17.

According to the Corps, about 750 Marines will be in town, but they believe 75,000 will attend the various activities throughout the week.

While most of the events will be in downtown Cleveland, Marines will be in the suburbs, working on community service projects and mentoring kids at area recreation centers. Saturday and Sunday will feature a series of demonstrations on land, air and sea at Burke Lakefront Airport. All events are free and open to the public.

[Click here for a full Marine Week schedule http://5.wews.com/Y4N ]

Cleveland has a long-standing relationship with the Corps. There are more than 9,370 active duty and reserve Marines from Ohio serving right now, and five Clevelanders have been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, according to a news release from the Marines. The 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment is in Brook Park.

In the past, Chicago, Boston and St. Louis hosted previous Marine Week events. The Corps typically tries to bring the experience to cities that do no have much interaction with Marines on a regular basis.