Over 1,400 Participants Raise $200K at Fairhaven’s Nicole Podkowa 5K

FAIRHAVEN (WBSM) — On a picture-perfect Sunday morning, over 1,400 people took part in the 9th annual Nicole Podkowa 5K Run & Walk to benefit SouthCoast families battling cancer, and together we raised over $200,000.

Jeff Reed of New Bedford was the top male finisher at 18:41 and Boston’s Nora Blodgett was the top female finisher at 19:42, but even they would tell you the real winners were the families who get to have a little of the burden taken off them while a loved one is undergoing cancer treatment.

READ MORE: Complete Race Results From the 2026 Nicole Podkowa 5K

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What Is the Nicole Podkowa Patient and Caregiver Fund?

The Nicole Podkowa Patient and Caregiver Fund is named after Nicole Podkowa, the wife of Dr. John Podkowa, Executive Chief of Primary Care at Southcoast Health. She passed away from breast cancer in 2016. The fund was created to provide financial support for those with cancer, paying for things like the rent or mortgage or utility bills so that the patient can just focus on getting better without stressing about money.

Dr. Podkowa himself continues to run the race each year in honor of his late wife.

Courtesy Southcoast Health

A Personal Journey From Cancer Diagnosis to the Finish Line

This was my fourth year taking part in the Nicole Podkowa 5K, which I started doing just months after completing my own bout with cancer. I was diagnosed with kidney cancer in early 2022, and had my left kidney removed as a result. Thankfully, that was the only treatment necessary for me, and I have been cancer-free ever since. I was very lucky that I didn’t require the radiation and chemotherapy that quite often keeps cancer patients out of work while the bills pile up. I was back at work at WBSM before I’d even used up all my sick days.

I am forever grateful to Dr. Dennis LaRock and the entire team at Southcoast Health who saved me (and shoutout to Dr. Sagar Patel and my current physicians who are keeping me healthy), and I know I am not the only one who owes my life to the great folks at Southcoast Health.

Ideal Weather and Strong Turnout in Fairhaven

A total of 1,417 participants took part in Sunday’s event, with many forming teams for either walking or running the course as well as group fundraising.

Courtesy Southcoast Health

It wasn't just for adults, either. There is a kids' run event as part of the Podkowa 5K, and many children also walk or run the entire 5K course as well.

Courtesy Southcoast Health

Thanks to the generosity of my friends and the WBSM audience, I was able to raise $1,560 (that I know of – some checks may still be coming in the mail to Southcoast Health), which is by far the most I’ve ever raised and good enough for third-most, according to the website. I jokingly posted on Facebook that coming in third for fundraising was the only way I could ever get a third-place finish in a 5K.

For much of the week, the forecast was predicting a 40-50 percent chance of rain on Sunday morning, but as the weekend approached, that changed to the rain moving to later in the day.

Courtesy Southcoast Health

By the time everyone arrived at Southcoast Health Cancer Care on Sunday morning, we were greeted by blue skies, bright sunshine, and temperatures in the low 60s. I’m not sure how the runners felt about the conditions, but it was an absolutely perfect day for taking a 3.1-mile walk.

Courtesy Southcoast Health

Since my first time taking part also coincided with the start of my weight loss journey, I have been able to improve my (walking) times in each of the past four years. I went from a 1:04:39.3 finish in 2023 to 54:51.5 in 2024, and then a 54:22.7 finish in 2025. This year, despite the ideal conditions, I felt like I was a bit off-pace throughout; part of it felt like a mental obstacle, since I was upset with myself for leaving my bib with my number 132 on it at home. So while I wasn’t going to get an actual chip time or show up on the finishers’ list, I was keeping track with my phone’s stopwatch.

Beating the Clock to Set a Personal Best

As I passed the marker for the third mile, I looked down at my watch and thought I had an outside chance at somehow still improving my time. As we came back down off Bridge Street and turned the corner down Mill Road heading back to the cancer center, though, it seemed as though I was going to finish slightly behind where I had been last year. I was a little upset with myself for not doing better, especially when so many people had believed in me and donated to the cause.

As I rounded the corner past Urgent Care, I looked down one last time at my watch. Wait, I might be able to sneak in under that 54:22 if I hurry, I thought. I had tried a light jog a few times to no avail – I am just not ready to be a runner, even at 100 pounds lighter than I was – but in those final few seconds, I summoned up all the energy I had left and ran the last 25 yards or so over the finish. I hit stop on my stopwatch just as I stepped over and looked down to see “54:00.00.”

Tim Weisberg/Townsquare Media

Somehow, I had set a personal best despite feeling as if I hadn’t done my best. There’s probably some cosmic analogy there to my health journey as a whole, but at that point, I was too tired to even ponder it. I just grabbed a banana and a cranberry juice from the refreshments table and started thinking about how I could do better next year, both for my finishing time and in how much money we can all raise for the cancer warriors who have to endure a lot more than 3.1 miles of sore feet and achy calves.

Courtesy Southcoast Health