Moriches Community Center hosts Anthony Parlato Memorial 5K Run/Walk

The Moriches Community Center hosted the 2024 iteration of the Anthony Parlato Memorial 5K Run/Walk marathon on June 1.

The marathon began at 9 a.m., in Neville Park, alongside Canal Street in Center Moriches, and proceeded through a series of local roads to arrive at the southern end of Senix Avenue, and then returned to the starting line at Canal Street. The event raised money for the funding of various programs hosted by the Moriches Community Center.

The marathon was named to honor former Moriches Community Center director Anthony Parlato, who died in 2013. According to Moriches Community Center member Sonny Saguto, Moriches Community Center founder Kathleen Johnson had suggested that a fundraising event should be named after him.

“He was a beaming personality,” Saguto said. “The whole town knew who he was, what he stood for, and how much he wanted to help the youth and those in need. Some people believe in their ideas; he lived and breathed them. ‘Help Someone Today’ was truly what he did. He wouldn’t rest [at] night until he had made someone’s day better. He devoted his whole life to the community, so the least we could do is carry on his legacy as best we can.”

“[Parlato] was Sonny’s and [my] mentor,” Moriches Community Center member Michael Valentine added.

After the conclusion of the marathon, the first- and second-place male and female winners of each age bracket were honored, alongside the man and woman who had the fastest times. The fastest man and woman each received a trophy, while the other winners received medals. The fastest overall male runner was Dan Shaw-Town, who had a time of 19 minutes and 38 seconds. Amanda Irish won the award for fastest overall female runner, with a time of 23 minutes and 18 seconds. According to Saguto, 53 people ran in this year’s marathon.

“The 5K is a race a lot of people can run,” marathon participant Maury Dean said. “It’s a nice cause… [and] a great community.”

The marathon has been held annually since 2018 except in 2020, when it did not take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Saguto, a variety of organizations, from the Town of Brookhaven to East End Sign Design and the Center Moriches Fire Department, all helped organize the event. The Moriches Community Center currently plans to host the marathon again next year.

“We want to continue to expand, make it bigger each year, get more runners, get more sponsors, start doing raffles and prizes,” Saguto said.

“We want to spread what Anthony Parlato stood for and [how] he helped the community,” Valentine added.