PARIS – A Run for the Lilacs will begin 8 a.m. Monday, May 31, starting at the McLaughlin Foundation, 97 Main St.

Eight cultivars of lilacs, more than 60 plants, have been donated for the McLaughlin Foundation’s first 5K walk/run.

In support of its efforts to preserve the late Bernard McLaughlin’s garden – which includes one of the largest lilac collections in Maine – several nurseries have donated more than 60 good-sized lilacs for this Memorial Day Lilac Lap.

Syringa Plus in West Newbury, Mass., Fox Hill Nursery in Freeport, and Bailey Nursery in St. Paul, Minn., are donating lilac plants. In addition, Bailey Nursery is sponsoring the event, which aims to raise needed funds for the McLaughlin Foundation in South Paris on Route 26.

The race route will follow neighborhood roads, starting and finishing at the garden. The route includes up and down hill stretches, rest/water stations and lilacs.

Race registration forms are available at the McLaughlin Foundation, 97 Main St., South Paris, and at www.mclaughlingarden.org.

Entry fees are $10 for adults and $5 for kids under 12.

The first 200 preregistered entrants will receive a lilac lap T-shirt. Lilac prizes will be awarded to the first three runners in each age group, male and female, and to the first three walkers in each age group.

There will be awards for oldest and youngest entrants; best single-, double- and triple-lilac costumes; and best canine costume (all canine entrants must be leashed, well-mannered and cleaned-up after). Random prizes may be awarded that day at the discretion of the race director.

Race participants are encouraged to stay and watch the South Paris Memorial Day parade at 10 a.m., and to hear Dan Lakeman read “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed,” 11 a.m., in the garden.