More than 800 runners, walkers (and rollers in strollers) came out to support Groundwork Jacksonville at the 6th Annual VyStar Emerald Trail 5K/10K & 1-Mile Fun Run presented by JTC Running.
Young and young at heart enjoyed the scenic route along the Emerald Trail LaVilla Link and S-Line Rail Trail with views the Park Street mural and the Sugar Hill Mosaic, native plants, a Story Walk and restored ponds with living shorelines.
There was plenty of food, activities and giveaways for participants and spectators to enjoy from our wonderful community partners including the Juice Gawdess, and Bearded Brunch Food Truck; free books from the Jacksonville Public Library and Mayor Deegan’s River City Readers Bookmobile; Project One Health’s Less Screen. More Green Challenge; REI; Sierra Club of Northeast Florida; JTC Running; Riverside Avondale Preservation; Civitan Club; JTA; Tom Bush Mazda; Runner’s Elite; Kathy’s Table and Publix.
All participants received a race bag courtesy of VyStar Credit Union and a custom Emerald Trail 5K/10K t-shirt. All finishers earned a custom-designed Emerald Trail medal and the top male and female finishers overall and in several age categories were presented with awards. See the full race results.
Project OneHealth, a new initiative of the Winston Family Foundation, was on hand with the “Less Screen. More Green Challenge” including activities and giveaways to encourage families to reduce their screen time and spend 30 minutes outside every day.
The event coincided with VyStar’s annual “Good is everywhere” celebration Sept. 10-30, 2025, featuring free experiences for members and the public, volunteer opportunities for every VyStar employee and spotlights on community partners like GWJax. Dozens of VyStar employees volunteered and participated in the event.
Thank you to our generous sponsors:
 VyStar Credit Union and JTC Running; Champion Sponsors: Halff, JTA and Project One Health; Medal Sponsors: 1st Place Sports, Swisher International, SCAPE, Miller Electric, Dennis + Ives, and Baptist Health; Pacesetter Sponsors: Tom Bush Family of Dealerships, Gateway Jax, Lewis, Longman & Walker, ruckus, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy and Volkert; and Race Day Sponsors: Jacobs, HDR, Meskel & Associates Engineering, Meyer Najem.
