Abner Oakes III Veterans Run 5K & 10K

Abner Oakes III Veterans Run 5K & 10K takes place in Hamden, Connecticut, on October 25, 2026, with the 10K and the 5K (3.1 miles) both starting at 8:30 a.m. The race supports House of Heroes Connecticut, which carries out free home repairs for military and law enforcement veterans and their spouses, and it is held in memory of Abner Oakes III, a Navy veteran who founded the Hamden Veterans Commission.

Since 2012 the organization has helped more than 200 veterans across 69 Connecticut towns, and the two distances let people of very different abilities take part on the same morning. Starting them together means both fields share the opening stretch, so line up by the pace you intend to run. For the 10K, six to eight weeks with a weekly tempo run and one long run of an hour is enough; the 5K asks less and suits a first race.