Helen’s 5K Run/Walk 2026: A Little Rain, A Lot of Community

On a gray Sunday morning with a light drizzle falling, more than 230 runners, walkers, teams and supporters came out to Sands Point Preserve for Helen’s 5K Run/Walk. Families with strollers, white canes, trekking poles, and one very focused guide dog headed out onto the USATF-certified course, and every finisher crossed the line to a medal and a cheer.

This year’s race was captained by Maricar Marquez, Supervisor of Independent Living at the Helen Keller National Center and an experienced road racer and triathlete who opened the season with a five-word invitation: ‘I’m running. Are you in?‘ Marquez, who is DeafBlind, has been part of the HKNC community for more than 20 years and was one of the first DeafBlind runners trained through Guiding Eyes for the Blind’s Running Guides program. On Sunday, the community answered: runners, walkers, families, and teams filled the course with her, while she ran it the way she trains, with her guide dog Cliff and a Support Service Provider providing real-time communication and sighted-guide support along the route.

“With everybody here together celebrating, this is bigger than all of us; it’s about empowerment, communication, relationships, and access,” Maricar told the crowd. “We are raising awareness and walking with a purpose.”

They didn’t come alone. Corporate teams, family crews, and friends walking for friends filled the start line, including a team from sponsor AKAM and a team of more than a dozen walkers, most of them blind or low vision, rallying around longtime Helen Keller Services for the Blind participant Johnny Servino.

The morning had started indoors at the Preserve, where speakers set the tone for the day. Board Chairman Larry Kinitsky welcomed the crowd: “To every runner and walker in this room, and to everyone taking part virtually this week from wherever they are, thank you. You are the reason this event works. Everything raised here supports independence and opportunity for the individuals we serve at Helen Keller Services.”

Councilwoman Mariann Dalimonte brought greetings from the Town of North Hempstead, and every speaker was interpreted in ASL. Town Supervisor Jennifer DeSena joined participants throughout the morning, and News 12 was on the course and at the celebration. CEO Dr. Susan Ruzenski closed the remarks by recognizing the top three teams of the year, Team G Builders, Team Jon Gabry, and Team JS Tech, Johnny’s crew, before sending everyone to the start.

The USATF-certified 5K benefited Destiny Home, the only group home in New York State certified by the Office for People With Developmental Disabilities to serve individuals who are DeafBlind with intellectual disabilities, along with communication access at HKNC, including ASL and tactile interpreting, Support Service Provider services, and assistive technology.

After the Race: The Conference Center Celebration

After the race, the HKNC Conference Center filled with food, raffles, community partner tables, and family activities. At the hands-on Access Lab, staffed by members of HKNC’s regional representatives team, visitors experienced braille, tactile sign language, accessible apps, adaptive games, and the everyday technology individuals who are DeafBlind use at home and at work. The awards presentation recognized top finishers across divisions including Overall, Veteran, Blind, Low Vision, DeafBlind, and youth categories.

“Today was about a community coming together,” said Dr. Susan Ruzenski, CEO of Helen Keller Services. “Communication access is foundational to independence, and events like this raise awareness and the funding that makes those services possible, helping individuals who are DeafBlind live, work, and thrive in the communities they call home.”

A Tradition Since 1998

Helen’s 5K Run/Walk began in 1998 as Helen’s Walk and has grown into an annual tradition. Proceeds this year support Destiny Home in Port Washington and communication access services at HKNC, the only comprehensive national vocational rehabilitation program of its kind.

A big shout-out to our virtual participants completing their own 5K in their communities this week, from wherever they call home. You’re part of this race too, and we’re grateful for every mile.

Thank you to our sponsors: Elite Amenity Management, ConnectOne Bank, AKAM, Alana Benjamin Group, JM2, Maura Bros. & Co. Landscape Contractors, Five Star Advertising & Marketing, and John & Pamela O’Connell. Thank you to our community partners Bryant & Cooper Steakhouse, Learning Express, Book R-Port, SMUSHT, and Plant A Row, and to our in-kind supporters Arena Graphics, Krystal Produce, Liberty Coca-Cola, and Sysco.

And thank you to the volunteers who set up the course, staffed the water station, worked the finish line, and checked everyone in, and to the Town of North Hempstead, the Sands Point Police Department, and Port Washington EMTs for keeping the route safe and open, as they do every year.

Explore the Accessible Photo Gallery

The full story of the day lives in our new accessible photo gallery: 59 photos across seven sections, from check-in to the after party.

We call it accessible because it was built that way from the start: these photos are meant to be read as well as seen. Every photo carries alt text and a full written image description you can expand right beneath it, and the entire page can be navigated by headings, with the design refined through braille display testing. Whether you read it in braille, hear it through a screen reader, or see it on a screen, the gallery tells the same story in the same order.