New 5K Race Honors Joyful Spirit, Enduring Legacy Of Gavyn Drago, 17: 'Forever Loved'

NORTH FORK, NY — When Gavyn Avery Drago, 17, died recently after being found unresponsive in a Mattituck pool, the shock and loss reverberated throughout the North Fork community — as family and friends remembered a teen who'd touched countless hearts.

And now, his parents have organized an event and created a foundation to ensure that his enduring legacy shines bright always, helping others to find light in the midst of life's darkest hours.

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"Gavyn's Favorite 5K" will be held at Orient Beach State Park on Sunday, October 18.

"Run for joy. Make a difference," the event's description said.

Gavyn's parents Marissa and Bryan Drago said that Eastern Long Island Hospital Foundation's Walk to Recovery 5K — held this year at Indian Island County Park and not Orient — had long been their son's favorite event.

So the spot seemed ideal to launch an inaugural 5k to honor their son's beautiful memory.

"Join us for the inaugural Gavyn's Favorite 5K at Orient Beach State Park on Sunday, October 18, 2026, as we come together as a community to run, remember, and celebrate the life and legacy of Gavyn Drago," they wrote.

"The name of the race has a very special meaning: this was Gavyn's favorite 5K course to run," his parents said. "He loved racing at Orient Beach State Park for not only its breathtaking views, but especially for how flat and fast it was. Gavyn was always chasing his next goal and his next PR" or personal record, "and to him, this was the perfect course to do just that."

And so, they said, "When it came time to choose a place to run in his memory, there was only one location that felt fitting. Gavyn's Favorite 5K brings us back to a course he genuinely loved, to run the same roads he ran and to celebrate the joy, determination and competitive spirit he brought to every starting line."

Gavyn was a 17-year-old senior at Mattituck High School, captain of his track and cross-country teams, and a deeply loved son, nephew, cousin, teammate and friend, his parents said.

"He was kind, funny, genuine and determined, and in his far-too-short life, he made an extraordinary impact on the people and community around him."

Running was more than something Gavyn loved: "It was woven into the very fabric of who he was," his parents said. "It shaped his identity, challenged him, gave him purpose, and became an important part of the person he grew to be. While not the fastest on his team(s), but no less determined, at 14 years old he decided he was going to run his first half marathon. And he did."

By 17, he completed five half marathons, including the United Airlines NYC Half, and dreamed of one day running the New York City Marathon.

For that, he said he would "put a 26.2 sticker on the car."

"Gavyn also lived with epilepsy, but he never allowed it to define what he could accomplish," his parents said. "Instead, he turned his own experience into an opportunity to help others, raising thousands of dollars for the Epilepsy Foundation through his running."

Gavyn's Favorite 5K was created so that all the miles Gavyn logged, and the impact he was already making, can continue, his parents added.

Proceeds from the race will benefit
established by Gavyn's family to carry his legacy forward. The Foundation will support causes that reflect the things that mattered to Gavyn and the life he lived. Funds raised through the foundation will help advance vital research and scientific discovery dedicated to finding better treatments and working toward a cure for epilepsy. A portion of the proceeds will also go towards assisting families of teens living with the neurological disease — "initiatives that we know Gavyn supported.

Whether you run, walk, volunteer, donate, or simply come out to support the people who loved Gavyn, we invite you to be part of the beginning of something we hope will continue for many years to come."

Registration ends October 17 at 5 p.m. Register by October 7 to guarantee your race shirt. In-person registration available on 10/18 starting at 7:30 a.m.. $40 per registrant

"Run for joy. Make a difference," his parents said.

Speaking with Patch this week, Marissa and Bryan said that their focus is not on the unspeakable tragedy of loss of losing their son, their only child — but on celebrating their beloved boy's beautiful and rich life.

"We're in this weird place where nothing really makes sense anymore for us. So we're just trying to move forward a little bit," Bryan said. Remembering the joy that was their son, he said, "I do like when people say, 'What a beautiful life he lived,'" Bryan said. "So that's our main focus. It's very hard to live it; I hope we can get there. But from a very early age, he just touched a lot of people. And he wanted to continue doing that — he did that until he left us."

Gavyn, his parent said, was diagnosed with epilepsy as a small boy, about 6 or 7. "He was like a typical kid," Bryan said. "At first they said nothing was wrong, that he'd grow out of it. But then they started knowing in their hearts that 'something was off.'"

In the beginning, his parents said, the epilepsy was "manageable. And then it grew into a more serious situation about five years ago."

But despite facing challenges, Gavyn was brought up to know that he could — and would — accomplish any dream he set out to realize. He could scale any mountain, chase any dream —never defined by physical obstacles.

In his parents, Gavyn saw models of resiliency and a can-do spirit that infused their lives together.

"Byan and I are both career changers," Marissa said. "There are some things we've discovered later in our lives. And, you know, I think Gavyn just always saw two people that just just 'did the thing'."

She added: "I lost my parents young. 
By the time I was 26, they were both gone. So it's very difficult, but you have to persevere — or you won't. We were some really good examples of that. Me, from that perspective. Bryan, from the perspective of just being a person who is just always very self-motivated. And so I think those were really just his influences early on."

Marissa said they opened their beloved restaurant, Main Road Biscuit Co., in Jamesport in 2016. "Gavyn was seven. From early on, he loved just being out there 'working,' bringing water to tables, greeting people, bringing menus — he thought that was so exciting."

As parents, Marissa and Bryan said, "Looking back, the things that that liked, we always encouraged it. When he was very young, about two years old, he was really just suddenly into guitars. And so we got him all different kind of guitars.
I took him to music classes in Brooklyn. We leaned in."

Their son, Marissa said, had a lifelong love of Legos. And that love was fostered by his family.

"We took him to Lego stores all around the world. We went to Rome, to London. We went to Paris. We've taken him to a store in Florida, everywhere we go — in California. 
We went to every Lego store everywhere. We always said, 'Let's just find the most challenging set.' So we had a lot of those sets — some of the architecture sets, some of the harder ones. He really rallied the troops — and we were on board. 
We would analyze if a set is a good set, how many pieces is was, and how many mini figures it had."

One set holds bittersweet meaning now.

"He had pre-ordered, I think it was a Doomsday set, shortly before he passed away, maybe a couple of months ago. And he did the set right when it came.
And I'm really glad that he did," Marissa said. "I had really thought it would be a good Yom Kippur set, to do when you're fasting. But he didn't want to wait that long. He like it was like, 'I don't think so. That's not happening.' And he sat down and did it."

The Lego build was so much more than just a set, Marissa said.

"We analyzed it and I said, 'How much is the set?' And then we said, 'I think it's worth it because it only came with one minifigure, but it was a very unique one. 
And, I think, in those conversations, he felt safe — and he felt valued. His opinion was valued."

Looking back, Marissa said the Lego set discussions were just one way the strong bonds Gavyn shared with his parents were born.

"Looking back now — I never thought I'd be looking back, on my parenting skills — I see that we were very supportive. We got in on it wholeheartedly. I can't tell you the countless movies that Gavyn roped us into watching."

Her son, she said, loved superhero movies — and when his friends weren't available, he'd ask to go with his parents and then go again, to see the same film with his friends.

"It wasn't a frivolous thing. It was a real passion. And we got it. We understood," Marissa said.

Raising a son with epilepsy, Marissa explained, meant often "straddling the line. You want them to press forward, but you also want to protect them. And you don't want anything to happen to them. It's very, very difficult as they're growing and becoming teenagers and are out in the world."

Gavyn, Bryan said, was not just an only child but the first grandchild. "For many years, he got so much attention," he said. "I feel like sometimes that can go either way, but I feel like he just took it in a good way. He just absorbed it all and he he wasn't spoiled, but he he was just used to talking to all these adults and all these older people. It wasn't intimidating for him from a very young age, it just was part of who he was, as part of his natural life. "

Gavyn, Bryan said, had a precious and close relationship with his great-grandparents — and was incredibly close to his extended family and relatives in California. California, where his cousins lived, and Bryan's best friend and children lived. A place for laughter and sunshine and making memories.

Of all the destinations Gavyn was able to explore — Rome and Hawaii and beyond — California remained his favorite, his parents said. A boy who "ranked everything, especially movies," Gavyn consistently held California in the number-one spot. "He'd say, 'This has 2019 vibes, the California trip where everything seemed to be perfect,'" Bryan said.


Another favorite trip was a visit to Yosemite, Bryan said.

"He was just blown away just being in the presence of these huge, huge, 3,000 foot granite formations — hiking around them. It's just something totally different. Usually we were by the water — he loved the water. But Yosemite, we were there in springtime, so the waterfalls, they were crazy. It was just a different kind of trip and we really appreciated that it in a different way."

Bryan pauses before continuing, his voice aching with pain. "Looking back at pretty much all our memories, they're a little bit different now, right? It's a very unique feeling and I'm glad that he had all of this in his lifetime."

Bryan said as a family, they shared many beautiful experiences with their son — and both he and Marissa individually, as well, made time for special experiences and memories with Gavyn.

As a little boy, Bryan said Gavyn, "had a lot of energy. He just loved having fun."

He loved basketball, and performing in the Westhampton Beach Performing Art Center's theater camp — the theater, in a heartfelt tribute, put his name on the marquee after he died, they said.

Gavyn, his parents said, had a gift for making other kids feel included. He was very close to his younger cousin, his parents said, a bond that grew each year.

And then, his parents said, Gavyn discovered running — and the uninhibited joy of flying free, the wind in his hair as he raced in the sunshine.

Marissa said she initially directed her son into running as a way to stay in shape when basketball was done for the season; he first began in cross-country, they said.

"We said, 'Just run, stay fit. And that's how it started. 
And I think he just realized it's pretty empowering,"

He wasn't immediately a natural runner, Bryan said. "I told him, 'I don't think you're necessarily a natural runner, but I do think you have a high ceiling if you stick with it. You can get you can go pretty far with this if you want to.' I think he embraced that."

Their son liked to track his mileage on the running app Strava, his parents said. "He was really into it," Bryan said. "It definitely much differently than than we anticipated. He really was the driver for all these half marathons."

His parents worried, told him to perhaps pursue his marathon dreams later in life. But their son was determined.

"When he knew he wanted to do something, he would listen to us, but he wouldn't back down," Bryan said.

"He just would not let up on his point, and always presented us with reasons why he should should do it," Marissa said. "He somehow convinced to let him do one. He finally broke us," Marissa said, a smile in her voice at the memory.

Gavyn and his friends even prepared a PowerPoint, to convince them to let him participate in the half marathon. And then, they said, he was fiercely committed, even if it meant getting up at 4 a.m., hotel rooms, and buying gear — all that mattered was the race.

Suddenly, Bryan said, "The next morning, we're dropping him off at 5:30 in the morning at Prospect Park."

They had to leave their son amidst all the adult runners, at the metal detector.

"I started crying as if were dropping him off at nursery school again for the first time," Marissa said.

But eventually his friends arrived, and Gavyn had a pacer nearby, so that helped to ease their concerns, his parents said.

Gavyn, they said, was passionate about following his next dream, the New York Marathon.

"He had been trying to convince us for about a year, maybe even longer – he was trying to convince us to let him do it as a senior year this year, and we said, 'Gavyn, that's such a big commitment,'" Bryan said. "'You're going to have to train so much.'"

As parents, they knew Gavyn had a rigorous schedule planned for his senior year, along with cross country, and worried that training for the marathon might be too much.

But their son, heart shining, believed in dreaming big.

"Very recently, I saw a car with 13.1 on the sticker on the back," Bryan said. "And I said, 'Gavyn, when you get your first car, you should put that sticker on the back since you've done so many half marathons. And he looked at me and said, 'No, I'm doing 26.2.' Like it wasn't even an option."

Bryan added: "I've repeated this a few times, but he was one of those people who really just didn't get lost in the weeds. He really saw the big picture, clearer than us. He would listen to us and he sometimes he would say, 'I hear what you're saying, and I understand.'"

But, his parents said, after listening to their words of advice, their son remained undaunted in his dreams — digesting what they'd told him and then, moving on and ahead with conviction toward his goals.

The communication and bond they shared with their beautiful boy was unmatched, his parents said.

"He was one of those kids that hugged us every single night before he went to sleep," Bryan said. "And he said, 'I love you' every single night."

He added: "When we dropped him up at school, before we would get there, he would always say, 'Have a good day.' And later, at the end of the day, he would always ask me about my day. He was always interested and was always willing to start a conversation."

Their son, both agreed had a wisdom and deep maturity beyond his 17 years. And he cherished the time the three spent together as a family.

"At Christmas time, we always did a fancy dinner for just the three of us," Bryan said. "We'd go to a nice restaurant the week before Christmas. This year, we said, 'If you want to invite your girlfriend or one of your close friends, you can. And he looked at us like we were nuts. He said, 'No, that's just for the three of us.' When I was 17 and I wanted I didn't want to have to do with my parents. I loved them, but I was 17. So it was just wonderful that he just viewed our time together as special, that way."

Despite the challenges epilepsy presented, Gavyn never let anything keep him from living life to the fullest and pursuing every path that beckoned, racing ahead to his future with his trademark fortitude, energy and bright smile.

Gavyn and Marissa both said they were concerned he might have been pushing himself too hard. "He would not listen," he said.

"He wanted to get that AP Capstone diploma," Marissa said, which had a definite set of AP requirements to obtain.

And while they never said he couldn't do something, they would suggest other paths, just to afford him alternate options to consider, they said.

But forgoing the quest for an AP Capstone diploma "wasn't even an option," Marissa said. "What was it about him? It was just something that was inside of him. It was just who he was. He was always motivated and driven. There was just something inside of his personality."

Living with epilepsy wasn't always easy, even for a young man with such a sunny disposition and joyful heart.

"He had limitations," Bryan said. "You know, he had to come home from school and take a nap before he put in the work. And he had some moments where he didn't love living the way he was living, when he saw some of his friends being able to do other things that he wasn't able to do."

"He was a little more limited," Marissa said.

"We just told him everyone was different," Bryan said.

"And that everyone has their cross to bear," Marissa said.

Looking ahead to college, as he toured schools, Gavyn had a keen interest in political science, as well as marketing.

But he was also savoring every minute of his life on the North Fork, planning his bright future with beloved friends.

"He had an amazing summer. You know, he was so excited for his senior year. He was excited to go away to school, just because we are in a small community," Bryan said. "But he was totally embracing his senior year to a degree that I've never seen before."

Gavyn's North Fork summer was spent in an idyllic cavalcade of Instagram worthy moments that meant everything — going to the gym, the movies, the beach, First Fridays in Mattituck.

"He really was growing into a young man, confident," Bryan said.

Their son, Bryan said, had been slated to meet with the cross country coach at Clark University in Massachusetts on a recent Saturday.

"I had to email her and say, 'We're not coming up. He passed away,'" Bryan said, reflecting on the most agonizing words a parent could ever have to voice.

"She wrote us back a beautiful email," he said. "She said, 'I've talk to a lot of recruits and he was so confident, and so warm.' She was very complimentary of his running program and his coaches. She said it was very rare to talk to someone of his age in that capacity. So it was it just kind of reassuring for us that somebody who basically talked to him for an hour, saw that he came across in that way — that's the way he really was," Bryan said.

"He was always a good communicator," Marissa said. "He was always a good writer. I always love reading things that he was writing for school. His storytelling was always fabulous and always so genuine. And even when he was starting to write essays for college, I was just like, 'This is great. It's just you.'"

Of their son's love for the Orient race, Bryan said about five years ago, Gavyn said he wanted to do some road races.

The Orient race was the first in the season, after their son's cross-country season at school.

"It would always be the start of like this in-between between season and he loved that course," his parents said. "It was always a beautiful day, and there's water on both sides of the road. It's unbelievably gorgeous. And it's flat, as flat as it can be for a road race, so there's a good chance that you're going to PR the race, that it was going to be his PR for the year. "

When the race was moved two years ago to Indian Island, Gavyn was deeply disappointed, Bryan said.

But now, after Gavyn died, in what felt like a sign, his parents believe that mabe the race was moved so that Gavyn's own inaugural race, could be held in the place he loved most.

Both Gavyn and Marissa said they've definitely had powerful signs from their son — even though at first, Gavyn said he was skeptical.

"I didn't use to believe in signs," Bryan said. "I'm an attorney. But there have just been been way too many coincidences. We want to embrace it, but we're also grieving so hard that it's hard to do that, right now."

However, Bryan said while this time of deep, heavy grief is painful, he revels in remembering the shining moments of his son's beautiful life. "I like talking about it. I don't want to forget anything right now," he said. "I want to feel it all.
It's just this heavy feeling my chest. But I just want to feel it; I don't want it to dull. I just want to embrace it."

Both Marissa and Bryan believe their son would be overjoyed that they've organized the race.

"I know he would be," Bryan said. "There's this picture of him that we had from his first day of school. This idea for the race came together very quickly and I'm sending out emails to the family, asking, 'What do you think about this idea? What do you think of that idea?' And then there's this big picture we have blown up and he's just smirking at me," Bryan said, with affection. "It's as though he's saying, 'See, Dad? I got my race back in Orient. ' So, yes, I do feel like he would be very excited, pretty happy that this is happening. He loved racing and he loved that course. Yes, it's a fundraiser, but it's also a celebration for who he was and is, in our in our spirit and our our hearts."

The goal, they said, is to plan the fundraiser every year.

And also, to keep The Gavyn Avery Drago Foundation growing and flourishing, helping to provide funding and resources for research — and also, helping families with financial assistance, to afford expensive medical procedures and tests that may have otherwise been out of reach. And, too, to provide the little things that mean everything for those facing their hardest days — a new Lego set or a toy.

Both Marissa and Bryan wanted to thank the community that has come together, arms outstretched and hearts open wide, to wrap them up in love during the most unimaginable time in their lives.

"We've gotten messages from near and far, from people who are very close friends, family, all the way down to barely acquaintances," Marissa said. "We have received messages from everyone and anyone, just saying a kind word."

Strangers, they said, hug them in stores, offering comfort and concern, sharing memories.

"It's so sweet and lovely," Mariss said. "People have painted pictures for us. It's incredible, the things that people have given us — they've written poems, sent food and flowers and all the wonderful things."

"And we've had a lot of people open up to us about their own stories," Bryan said. "It's been very helpful."

"This community has been a lifeline," Marissa said.

Sitting shiva at their house, Marissa said they'd expected maybe a small gathering, a dozen people, but scores turned out in their backyard. "The house was overflowing with food," she said. "Everybody just wanted to be around us and just be around him and wanted to have that healing."

A rabbi spoke beautifully on both days. "She was just able to give people comfort, and it was lovely, really. The community has really, really come out," Marissa said.

And, too, Gavyn's group of close friends has shown up in a fierce show of love and support, his parents said.

"This group of friends, in this particular class, the Class of 2027, is really so tight," Marissa said. "They all protect each other. They just found each other through all these years of coming through the grades together. By the time they got to high school, they really came together. It's a group of about 10 to 12 kids. It's lovely. I always loved having them here, and I hope they still come here."

During these dark weeks, Marissa said: "His friends have been unbelievable.
Each one of them stood up at the wake, at the service, and spoke. It was really overwhelming and incredible. And then his cross country team team — and others joined as well, from track or even just other friends that just run — ran from the school to our house on that second day of shiva. 
They presented us with his jersey, his tank top, signed by everybody — and a picture of him running, framed, signed by the whole team. We were really overwhelmed. 
It was such a lovely sentiment"

She added: "His friends and people who were close to him, they are so committed to him. 
They just got him."

The unbelievable outpouring of love is a profound testament to how Gavyn lived his precious life.

"It speaks exactly to the boy he was," Marissa said. "It speaks to how he made people feel. They've all commented to us, all of them, how he made them feel. 
He always made people feel included."

A perfect example of his love for welcoming others into his life and circle is the bond he shared with his cousin, Marissa said. Even when Gavyn's friends came to the house, after he was gone, she saw them sitting by the firepit — Gavyn's cousin right in the middle, surrounded by love and warmth. Just as Gavyn would have wanted.

No matter what challenges life posed, their beautiful, joyful son faced them with a big smile and his trademark thumb's up.

"He always had a thumb's up," Marissa said. "We're looking at pictures. There are thousands of pictures — and he's always giving a thumb's up."

A devastated community continues to send messages of love after heartbreak.

"The Mattituck-Cutchogue community is in mourning over the tragic loss of high school senior Gavyn Drago. Our thoughts are with Gavyn's family, his friends, and his classmates," the district said. "We extend our deepest condolences to Gavyn's family, friends, and classmates."

The Greenport Union Free School District also sent a message of sorrow: "The Greenport school community joins Mattituck-Cutchogue in mourning the heartbreaking loss of high school senior Gavyn Drago. Our thoughts are with Gavyn's family, classmates, teachers, friends, and all those whose lives he touched. We extend our deepest condolences to Gavyn's family and the entire Mattituck-Cutchogue community during this incredibly difficult time. "

"The Southold Town Police Department extends its condolences to the family and all those affected by this tragic incident," police said.

Party Animal North Fork wrote on social media: "It is with profound sadness that we share the loss of a precious member of our Mattituck community, Gavyn A. Drago.Gavyn's parents, Marissa and Bryan, are so much a part of the fabric of our community, both as local business owners and, most importantly, as friends, neighbors, and people we care deeply about."

The message continued: "As a community, we hope to surround the Drago family with love and support as they honor and remember Gavyn. We also hope that, in the days, months, and years ahead, they continue to feel how deeply their family is held by the community around them. We encourage those who know and love the Drago family to come together in support of Marissa and Bryan during this unimaginable time. There are simply no adequate words for the loss of a child. We can only show up, hold space for their grief, honor Gavyn's life, and remind this family that they do not have to carry their sorrow alone.May Gavyn's memory always be held with love."

In his memory and with love, Main Road Biscuit Co. will be open this weekend and next week, will likely return to a fall schedule.

"One step at a time," Marissa said.