The Kiwanis Club of Glendale is hosting its annual Duck Splash on May 2 at Verdugo Park in Glendale from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

By Mary O’KEEFE

For those who have not attended, it is a treat to experience the thousands of (rubber) ducks racing down the river of water to the pond at the bottom – a river provided by members of the Glendale Fire Dept. Although it may be difficult to keep track of one particular duck, that is not a problem for Kiwanis volunteers. 

According to the Kiwanis Incredible Duck Splash official rules and regulations (https://glendalekiwanis.info/duck-race-2026), ducks are tracked by using numbered, barcoded tags on the bottom of each rubber duck that matches it in a computer base with the name of the person who adopted it.

Yes, the ducks that race are “adopted” by generous “adopters” who paid $5 per duck for the privilege of taking part in the annual fundraiser – and there are thousands of yellow rubber ducks. This is a big fundraiser for the Kiwanis Club of Glendale and helps members do the work they have done for so long. 

“This is our main fundraiser for the year and we usually net about $100,000,” said Al Nunez, Duck Race chair. “Over the years we have donated [more than] $1,500,000 back into the community.”

Current projects for the Kiwanis include providing academic scholarships, hosting essay contests in local middle schools, taking part in the guest chef program at Ascencia Glendale, awarding grants to many organizations and programs including colleges, Cops for Kids, Crescenta Valley High School Prom Plus, Foothill Autism Alliance and many more, according to Nunez.

The Duck Splash is a sight to be seen and has been part of Kiwanis Club of Glendale fundraising for two decades; 2026 will be its 21st year. 

“It was all new and exciting,” Nunez said of that first year of the Duck Splash. “We were creating it from scratch but the neat thing to me is that it is still going strong and generating enthusiasm for our Club, the community and especially the youth in our local schools.”

It does take a lot of work from volunteers to put on the event at the park, including “Golden Retrievers,” students who collect the ducks at the end of each race so they can be prepared for the next “heat.” 

“We have 120 members in our Club and we coordinate with 44 Duck Buddies who have hundreds of members who all contribute to sales and putting on the race. It’s thousands of [community service] hours over several months,” Nunez said. 

It is easy to support this event by adopting a duck – or ducks.

“You can adopt one duck up to as many as you want. If your duck comes in first place, you win $10,000! We have two second prizes of $1,000; two prizes of $500 and if you buy at least five ducks for $25 you are eligible for another prize of a $500 cash card,” Nunez added. 

For more information go to http://www.duckrace.com/glendale.

Verdugo Park is located at 1621 Cañada Blvd. in Glendale.