AUSTIN, Texas – The numbers are in, and the 2026 Cupid’s Chase 5K held on Valentine’s Day set a participation record both locally and nationally.

CBS Austin Chief Meteorologist Chikage Windler served as the Honorary Chair of the Cupid’s Chase 5K.

CBS Austin’s Chikage Windler served as the Honorary Chair for the Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

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After helping to start the race, she also ran it.

CBS Austin’s Chikage Windler with Community Options Executive Director Rebecca Tisthammer at the Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

The 3.1-mile race benefits Community Options, Inc., a nonprofit that supports individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Austin’s Community Options Executive Director Rebecca Tisthammer says the race proceeds are used to host celebrations for individuals, like parties to bring together host homes, group homes, and community support agencies. They celebrate holidays, have social outings, and take field trips.

CBS Austin’s Chikage Windler with Asa, one of the individuals served by Community Options. Asa helped give out medals and awards to Cupid’s Chase 5K finishers. (photo: Chikage Windler)

Tisthammer says, “It’s important for individuals with disabilities to not be isolated in their sub-communities, but to be able to find a place in their larger society and to feel needed, wanted, and capable.” Several people being supported by Community Options helped distribute medals at the race. One individual named Asa greeted runners at the finish line and helped with the awards ceremony.

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Tisthammer explained that “for him, being a part of the bigger community was such a valuable experience. All day, he had a purpose, and he had a chance to feel useful and included.” She adds, “He and the other individuals who got to help that day left with a deeper sense of belonging and connection. That’s what the race was really about: bringing that need into awareness.”

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

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This year’s Austin race was held on Valentine’s Day, with 365 runners and walkers braving the damp weather at Camp Mabry.

The start of the race was wet enough that some participants used umbrellas to stay dry. Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

The route led runners and walkers past several historic military aircraft on permanent display at Camp Mabry.

The race route gave participants the chance to run beside the historic military aircraft lining the track at Camp Mabry.{ } (photo: Chikage Windler)

It was a record field locally and nationwide, with over 17-thousand participants in Cupid’s Chase races across the country.

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

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Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

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Next year’s race is set for February 13th, 2027. The Austin race will once again be held at Camp Mabry.

Cupid’s Chase 5K (photo: Chikage Windler)

Learn how to volunteer or support Community Options, Inc.: https://www.comop.org/

Find out more about Cupid’s Chase: https://www.comop.org/cupidschase/

Cupids Chase 5K (video: Chikage Windler)

The city, which sits around 40 miles northeast of Austin, has been looking for a new top officer since September, when former chief Henry Fluck retired.  Now Joseph Chacon, the Austin Police Department Police Chief who retired in 2023, has made the short list, alongside the current interim Taylor chief Joseph Branson, former Levelland police chief Albert Garcia and Universal City Police Chief Johnny Siemens.

Taylor officials  put the finalists in front of the public late last week with two community meet-and-greet sessions where residents asked questions and share feedback.

City leaders have not said when they expect to make a final decision.

Chacon had a 25-year career with Austin police. He was appointed chief in 2021 during a turbulent period for the department following the 2020 racial justice protests, which left Austin grappling with officer shortages, ongoing criminal cases tied to crowd-control tactics and heightened community scrutiny of policing. During his tenure, the department saw hundreds of officers leave, prompting the city to bring in Texas Department of Public Safety troopers to help patrol parts of Austin.

Since retiring from Austin, Chacon has overseen emergency planning and ambulance services in Pflugerville, focusing on disaster readiness and coordination among first responders.

AUSTIN – As the United States continues its military buildup in the Middle East, droves of demonstrators gathered in Austin to call for President Trump to take action in Iran.

Iran protests in Austin

On the south steps of the Capitol, a sea of Iranian flags could be seen waving as dozens once again gathered to protest the Iranian regime. Along with the beat of drums, chants could be heard asking for President Trump to step in.

What they’re saying:

“We never thought after having lived through the dark, dark days of war that we would ever want military action against Iran,” said Maryam Abedi, who lived in Iran for part of her childhood. Her opinion on taking military action has now changed, telling FOX 7 that she sees U.S. military strikes as the only viable option to achieve change within the country.

“We’re just all feeling very helpless and hopeless and apart from actual military aid for regime change, there’s nothing else that can be done.”

Iran situation develops

This comes as indirect negotiations with the United States and Iran continue, as the White House pushes for concessions to its nuclear program. At the Board of Peace meeting in Washington on Thursday, President Trump hinted that an agreement could soon be on the horizon.

“We’re going to be making a deal. You’re going to be finding out over possibly the next ten days,” said the President.

In an effort to put extra pressure on Tehran to take part in a deal, the U.S. has heavily increased its military presence in the region. Dozens of fighter jets and warships have entered the Middle East, including the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Geral R. Ford, which passed into the Mediterranean Sea on Friday.

Some see force as only option

For some at Saturday’s demonstration, the use of force is seen as the only path forward.

“As a human being, you know. nobody, no one likes war, you know no one. But with this regime you need war, ok? You need war,” said Dariush Yazdani, a former soccer player for Iran’s international team. He now coaches in the Austin area.

“All we want is just President Trump to basically just stick to his word and help our people. Military action is the only way. Unfortunately, it’s the only way,” said Yazdani.

Worn around the necks of Saturday’s demonstrators were the pictures of those killed during Iran’s widespread crackdown on protests which swept across the country earlier this year. The Associated Press reports that death toll has reached at least 7,005, but activists fear the number may be much higher.

“I can’t even look at any of these pictures. Every time I look at them it just brings, it just brings tears,” said Ali, another demonstrator who wore the picture of a young Iranian killed in the protests. For many on Saturday, their faces were a bleak reminder there is no negotiating with Iranian officials.

“It’s not a legitimate government, they actually are a dictatorship and in every way they have tried to oppress the people of Iran. What we absolutely need right now is military aid and not negotiations. Negotiating with the Islamic Republic is only going to prolong the life of a very illegitimate regime,” Abedi told FOX 7.