Doing (more) good for the community

Tannon Trias, Eduardo Diaz, Luke Lombardo, West Port High School teacher Jamesha Gilliam, Caleb Lombardo, Karly Cupit and Ximena Diaz are shown during the 5K for Good, held the morning of Dec. 28, 2024, at the Baseline Trailhead. [Photo by Esi Coffey]

The inaugural 5K for Good had 171 people of all ages registered and more than 130 participants who actually turned out on race day, which was Dec. 28, 2024.

The misty morning ended with Eduardo Diaz, Luke Lombardo and Adam Truesdale capturing top honors for males and Ximena Diaz, Reese Cartwright and Kathryn Diaz bringing home the wins for females.

All in all, it was a pretty awesome gathering for a first-time event and meant that the organizers, brothers Luke and Caleb Lombardo, could add yet another accolade to their history of success in “doing good” for their community.

Luke, a student at West Port High School, is an avid runner. Caleb, a graduate of the school, has been at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs for the past several months. Working together long-distance, they organized their annual Concert for Good and this year added the 5K. The concert took place at the Ocala Civic Theatre, also on Dec. 28. Both events were presented by Citizens First Bank.

The brothers initiated the fundraising concert as part of a family tradition of doing something for people or a cause they care about around the holidays. Since 2021, the concerts alone have raised $56,000 for local nonprofits Brother’s Keeper and the Marion County Children’s Alliance. The goal for this year was $30,000.

“We raised over $47,000 this year, and it was amazing to be home and be reminded of how special this community is,” Caleb wrote via email after he was back in Colorado. “We are blown away by our community, from sponsors to eventgoers, and its willingness to support Brother’s Keeper and the Marion County Children’s Alliance year after year.”

To learn more, go to concertforgood.com

Adam Pryor, Josiah Santiago, Karly Cupit, Luke Lombardo, Caleb Lombardo, Elizabeth Saul, Sam Oumarjeet and James Williams are shown at the Concert for Good on Dec. 28, 2024, at the Ocala Civic Theatre. The Lombardo brothers are the driving force behind the Concert for Good and, new this year, the 5K for Good. [Photo by Raymond Manaois]