Friday, July 11, 2025
The annual St. Anthony’s feast and 5K run is returning to Oceanside this weekend, from Thursday through Sunday, providing family fun, food and fantastic community spirit.
The four-day extravaganza will feature live entertainment and carnival rides promising to attract thousands of community members to the feast, which is St. Anthony’s Church’s biggest fundraiser of the year.
Thursday’s activities will run from 6 to 10 p.m.; Friday’s, from 6 to 11 p.m.; Saturday’s, from 4 to 11 p.m.; and Sunday’s, from 2 to 9 p.m.
The 5K is Oceanside’s only road race, offering a flat, fast course open to all skill levels, beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday, rain or shine. Hosted by the St. Anthony’s Fathers Club, the Family Fun Run/Walk welcomes runners seeking to post fast times, leisurely walkers, and even those of the canine community, alongside their owners.
The Fathers Club, created almost 13 years ago, has become a pillar of the community, fulfilling a dual mission — to serve the St. Anthony’s community and to create a social avenue for fathers to get to know one another. The club undertakes a range of activities, from organizing the 5K and planting flowers at the church, to holding outdoor movie nights — all while letting fathers of the community teach their children acts of service for the community.
St. Anthony’s feast has become the largest and most celebrated festival in Oceanside, with all proceeds going to support the church.
“People come from several towns to join,” Tom Cesiro, feast organizer and St. Anthony’s volunteer, said. “It just keeps growing and growing.”
The St. Anthony’s Feast 5K, was established in 2019 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the St. Anthony’s Feast, the 5K run has quickly become a favorite among local runners and walkers
Sponsors and various groups within St. Anthony’s Church will have booths set up for family-friendly activity options. A plethora of delightful food choices also will be available for festival goers, including meatball subs, homemade zeppoles, pizza, and more.
This feel-good community event goes beyond just the church, bringing together community members across towns and promoting a grand collaboration of volunteers and businesses.
“St. Anthony’s Church serves as a social center as well as a religious one,” Joe Hissong, a longtime St. Anthony’s volunteer and 5K organizer, said. “They provide senior services, a food pantry, and Boy Scout meetings for the community.”
Volunteers from throughout Oceanside staff the four-day festival, which draws about 15,000 attendees each year. Boy Scouts and community members help distribute food and organize the 5K, which has grown significantly in popularity over the years with now more than 400 race participants. Community members join together to support each other by passing out various snacks and drinks to runners.
The race will follow the same course as in recent years, starting at St. Anthony’s parish on Anchor Avenue, heading south on Fulton, and then making a loop down Moore, Messick Avenue, Yost Blvd. and Oceanlea Drive to Harris Avenue, before looping back up Lawrence Avenue to Vermont and back up Fulton. Traffic will be impacted along the race route beginning at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday. Volunteers will be placed at each intersection acting as crossing guards to allow cars to pass without impeding the progress of the runners.
Early registration fees for the race are $30 for those 18 and older, and $20 for kids 17 and under, with the cost increasing as the start of the race nears. Awards for the top finishers in each age group will be handed out at 6:30 p.m. on the night of the race.
The first 200 people registered are guaranteed t-shirts, and all registrants will receive $5 in “Feast Bucks,” good for certain food and drinks during the festival. Complimentary string bags and water bottles for race participants will be available as supplies last.
Additionally, pay-one-price bracelets for access to all carnival rides will be available for purchase on opening night.
Organizers are expecting to raise around $12,000 from the 5K well and expect over 300 participants.
“We’re getting better every year,” Hissong said.
Additional reporting by Kepherd Daniel
