During his time as a North Carroll High School student, Marine Corps Staff Sgt. James Malachowski could most easily be found in one place: the weight room.
His older sister, Brandy, remembers having to wait outside the weight room at the end of the day for James to visit before she could go home, and when Marsha Herbert, a physical education teacher who had James as a student, thinks about him, the weight room is the first thing that comes to mind, followed by his ability to make people laugh.
Almost 10 years after James Malachowski graduated from the school, his parents Jim and Alison held a fitness challenge at the high school in honor of their son, who was killed by an improvised explosive device in Marjah, Afghanistan in March 2011.
On May 23, about 35 students stayed after school to compete in the event, which consisted of running, weight lifting, push-ups and sit-ups.
His mother Alison, a former Marine Corps member, said the fitness challenge is a way to keep her son's memory alive.
While he never discussed the possibility of not coming back during his first three deployments in Iraq, the night before James was to deploy to Afghanistan he told his family, "If I don't make it back, I don't want people to forget that I lived."
As a North Carroll student, James was a member of the track and field, football and baseball teams but spent most of his time lifting weights, his mother said.
"I used to joke with him and tell him if he got any bigger, he'd have to walk sideways through the door," Alison said. "He lived in that weight room."
His commitment to fitness carried over to this time in the Marines and in Afghanistan, when he built his own small gym at his patrol base.
Malachowski filled ammo cans with dirt and rocks and constructed a pulley system to do weight lifting, she said.
Working out was a stress reliever for Malachowski and he often told his men that a physically fit Marine is a mentally fit Marine, Alison said.
In much the same way, Alison said she hopes the students realize that staying physically fit can help them with any mental challenges that come their way.
Brandy, who is in the Army, said she hopes the challenge also reminds people of what Memorial Day is really about. Instead of just spending the day relaxing or going to parties, Brandy said people should take time to remember and honor military members like her brother who gave their life for the country.
His father, Jim, said its great to see the students get so enthusiastic about the challenge, knowing its something James would have loved.
Matthew Murphy, a junior at North Carroll, said while he never knew James Malachowski, he had a personal reason to partake in the event.
Ever since he saw a Marine in full uniform about three years ago, Murphy said he realized that was something he wanted to achieve himself.
"I told myself that's the route I'm going to take," Murphy said. "It sounds cheesy but I want people to look up to me like I looked up to that Marine."
Murphy, who recently signed up for the Marine Corps Delayed Entry Program, said being able to honor Malachowski in a fun way was a great idea to get students involved.
Michael Guderjohn, who knew Malachowski since the two were in fourth grade, said his friend would have loved the idea behind the event.
"This is a good fit to honor him," Guderjohn said. "It's well-rounded with the different tests and he would have liked that."
The fitness challenge is something that Alison said her family hopes to turn into an annual event and expand to other local high schools as a way to continuing to honor the man her son was.
"It'd be something Jimmy would approve of very much," Alison said.
Staff Writer Alisha George contributed to this article.
