James Weldon Johnson Birthday Run

June 20, 2026

Starts and Finishes at James Weldon Johnson Park

5K at 8 AM

One mile Fun Run/Walk at 9 AM

135 West Monroe Street, Jacksonville, Florida

Walk in the footsteps of history, then dance in celebration of a civil rights hero who shaped American culture. A day of community, commemoration, and joy!

Runners and walkers of all ages will set off from James Weldon Johnson Park and wind through the historic LaVilla neighborhood where the Johnson family once called home. Stories of his remarkable life will be shared in the “Along This Way Race Route”, meant to be run or walked at a “Party Pace” to enjoy interactive stations. The journey ends where it began - back at the Park - with a joyful Block Party featuring food trucks, games, champagne, DJ Rance Adams, and cupcakes courtesy of Noted Marketing.

Every dollar raised goes directly to the Friends of James Weldon Johnson Park, the City's nonprofit partner devoted to preserving Jacksonville's oldest and most treasured park.

Food Trucks * DJ * Games * Cupcakes * History * Interactive Race Route * Prizes

Every race entry will be entered to win prizes like tickets to the Jacksonville Waves & Sporting Jax.

Prizes & Perks:

• Shirts to all entrants
• 2 Tix for each runner to the 6/20 Sporting JAX vs Charleston Battery 7PM at Hodges Stadium. UNF with Free Parking. Courtesy of the Sporting JAX Foundation
• Entrants will be registered to win prizes such as tix to see Jacksonville Waves Game, Family 4 pack to Jumbo Shrimp Game & More! (must be present to win)
• Medals to all finishers
• Overall and age-group awards
• Post-race Block Park with DJ
• Birthday cupcakes at post-race celebration
• Chip timing
• Team competition

The run will start and finish at James Weldon Johnson Park, located at 135 West Monroe Street, Jacksonville, Florida. Check in will begin promptly at 7:00am and the run will begin at 8:00am sharp on Saturday, June 20, 2026.

About The Title Sponsor

VyStar Credit Union is the second-largest credit union headquartered in Florida, with 79 full-service branches across Florida and Georgia, 1 million members and assets of over $14 billion. VyStar is the top mortgage lender in Northeast Florida and a major employer in the region with over 2,500 employees across the communities it serves. VyStar membership is open to everyone who lives or works in the 49 contiguous counties of Central to North Florida, 29 Georgia counties, and past and present military members and their families all over the world. VyStar members have access to 55,000 surcharge free ATMs worldwide. For more information, visit vystarcu.org, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram,  X (Twitter), and LinkedIn.

About The Charity

All proceeds from this event benefit Friends of James Weldon Johnson Park, the City’s nonprofit partner for managing Jacksonville’s oldest and most historic park. Friends of James Weldon Johnson Park was formed in 2014 to create a welcoming, urban public space that engages with our history and nurtures a sense of belonging, which connects our diverse communities and resonates throughout Downtown. We envision a contemporary, vibrant, green public space that is the heartbeat of our community where all people gather for fun, education, and relaxation. Our placemaking success and wide-ranging collaborations provide a variety of unique experiences that are essential to a thriving Downtown creating a sense of civic identity and pride. Visitors today can listen to live music, have a bite to eat from one of our food trucks, play in the kid zone area or simply find a respite from the Florida heat with flowers, shade and interesting sculptures. But we are not JUST a park. We’re community builders. The weekend festivals we create highlight Jacksonville’s diversity and have generated passionate feedback such as “Jacksonville needs this!”

To learn more about Friends of James Weldon Johnson Park visit www.JamesWeldonJohnsonPark.org or follow @jamesweldonjohnsonpark on social media.