Tuesday, November 3, 2026
Brinley Heflin and Zach Massie round the corner as Amara Patel and Catie Taddei point runners in the right direction.
Tracy Salvino, Lauren Salvino, Kari Gough, and Gavin Gough. Gavin was the overall winner and Lauren was the first female finisher.
Can’t catch me! Lauren Schram can’t keep up with M. Lupo as he sprints to the finish line.
Participants in the Kiwanis 5K are off and running at the starting line.
Chris Damerow, Kathy Ridge, Cindy Timmerman, Abigail Timmerman, and Becky Irwin walked the 5K course.
Dani Wahl of Naples does a little multi-tasking during the Kiwanis 5K.
John Toledo and Cole Simmons catch a rest on the tailgate following the Kiwanis 5K.
Sarah Chacon and Tatiana Chacon enjoy a leisurely pace.
MIA student Jon Juels finished third overall.
Chris Heflin was the top finisher in the Male 35-44 category.
Top female finisher Lauren Salvino seems to be having fun.
Erin Grabowski of Marshall, Michigan, was the second female finisher.
Zorana Trivuncic finished third among female finishers.
Tim Anderson was the seventh male finisher.
Francine Grannell looks like a winner. She finished first in her age group.
Nathan Grabowski finished second in the male 35-44 age group.
Marsha Hance waves to volunteers. She finished first in her age group.
Derek Merida of Indianapolis finished first in the male 55-64 age group.
Amy Hayes flares the shaka, or hang loose sign, as she runs.
MIA student-athletes Gracie Johnson and Meghan Donaldson finished less than one second apart.
George Bortnick and Celia Calkins on the final leg of the Kiwanis 5K.
G. Welch and R. Welch appear to be in a dead heat.
Can’t you just feel Stacey Martello’s enthusiasm?
Ashley Heflin points toward the finish line.
MIA student Ian Lofty finished first in the male 15-24 classification.
Jessica Maurer of Painted Post, NY, enjoys the Kiwanis 5K course.
Mariah Walther and Lori Galiana show that volunteering is fun!
Kai Samuel and Janine Nguyen-Ho seem to be enjoying each other’s company.
Donna Beyer finished second in her age group.
G. Welch finished second in her age group.
Ashley Heflin runs across the bridge in Hideaway Beach.
Near-perfect weather welcomed 78 finishers in the twelfth annual Kiwanis 5K Run/Walk at Tigertail Beach on Saturday morning, March 28. In the end it was a pair of teenagers, Gavin Gough, 15, and Lauren Salvino, 16, who were the winners. Gough was the overall winner with a time of 21:38. Salvino was the top female finisher at 25:14.
All of the participants and volunteers had one thing in common: they were there for the kids.
“We're all about the kids,” said Alex Galiana, race director. "All of our fundraising and all of our donations need to be somehow or another related to kids. We participate with mostly the kids in the community, not just Marco Island, but Manatee. We want to look at expanding into maybe handling some of the Everglades City kids as well."
Galiana said this year’s turnout wasn’t as large as in past years, perhaps due to the packed spring activities schedule on the island. He hinted that next year’s race may be moved to November.
“We've had anywhere between 120-175 participants over the years,” he said. "All the money that we get from sponsors, predominantly, is where we make the money. That money goes back into the Kiwanis General Foundation Fund, which helps us to do all the projects that we do: the Toy giveaway for Manatee at Christmas time. Scholarships that we give out every year—we give out over $24,000 in scholarships, which predominantly go to the Key Clubbers that have been participating for years."
Galiana said the runners and walkers enjoy the scenic 3.1-mile route.
“It’s a beautiful route,” he said. "It goes all the way through Hideaway. The Hideaway Beach community has been gracious to let us host this thing for 12 years. So we take off out of Tigertail Beach and go in the back side of Hideaway. We cross over the boardwalk, which is a really pretty part of the thing. We go all the way around the golf course and come back. We run all the way through the community. It gives everybody an opportunity to enjoy Hideaway if they've never had a chance to. We're very, very fortunate that Hideaway continues to let us do that."
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