Pantrylympics event bring Johnson Co. food pantries together for competition, fun

You know that event that happens once every four years, bringing together athletes from vastly different backgrounds to compete for first, second, and third? No, no, no, not the Olympics. In Johnson County, it’s called Pantrylympics.

Three food pantries in the county—including the North Liberty Community Food Pantry, Coralville Community Food Pantry, and Iowa City CommUnity Food Bank—participated in food-related games for an afternoon of competitive team-building competition last weekend.

The event was held at 350 W. Penn in North Liberty, a large empty lot that will be home to the new North Liberty Community Pantry in early 2025. The idea was sparked early in the summer and ended up bringing together 45 people for the event and dinner.

Ryan Bobst, Executive Director of the North Liberty Community Pantry, said he hoped the inaugural event would bring the pantries together to get to know one another and the good work they contribute to their communities.

“All three pantries do really important work in the community,” Bobst said. “And we know that a lot of our friends and neighbors are struggling with food insecurity more than ever before.”

Bobst said the event was really about relying on one another and taking comfort in knowing there are volunteers and staff out there that are doing the same hard work throughout the county.

“I’m really hopeful that we’ll be able to do this as an annual event with more people and watch it grow,” Krystal Kabela, Food Bank Manager at CommUnity, said. “This is really exciting and I’m anxious to see how it all turns out.”

The staggering rise in food security is no secret in Iowa. From 2020 to 2024, the USDA reported a 25% increase in grocery prices. The North Liberty Community Food Pantry alone has distributed 324,259 pounds of food in 2024, which is 15% more than 2023 and nearly 40% more than 2022.

The weight of food insecurity falls on families as well as pantry volunteers and staff, which is why events like Pnatrylympics are held—to remind one another why they do it all.

The competition

Event #1: Mystery Can. The three teams assembled in a huddle to guess the contents of various unmarked canned goods. Contents of the mystery can were always expired and unable to be distributed at the pantries, and included black olives, baked beans, pineapple, and more.

Event #2: Compost Toss. This event required volunteers to throw expired bread (of varying sizes) into a large compost bin anywhere from 10 to 20 feet away. Volunteers used baguettes like javelins for the toss.

A North Liberty Community Pantry volunteer celebrates attempts to toss a baguette into the compost bin during an event in the Pantrylympics, a friendly competition between food pantries in Johnson County, on the site of the future North Liberty food pantry on July 20, 2024. (Photo contributed by Travis Crabb)

Event #3: Speed Dating. This was a contest of…well…speed. Volunteers date-checked various items as quickly and accurately as possible, categorizing each food item by the expiration date, whether it be 2012 or 2028.

Event #4: The Pantry is Right. Bobst named the pantry’s most needed grocery items, such as cereal, produce, and frozen meat. Volunteers worked together to guess the price without going over. Gasps of shock were heard when Bobst named the true price, reminding staff and volunteers how expensive and difficult it is to purchase food.

Event #5: Pantry Trivia. In this three-round event, volunteers answered trivia questions relating to each pantry. It was the time for the most experienced volunteers to shine.

Casey Gaylord, Volunteer Coordinator at the North Liberty Community Pantry, said the winner comes down to the volunteers.

“I think we’re going to win because we have amazing people that volunteer with us at the pantry,” Gaylord said.

John Boller, Executive Director of the Coralville Community Food Pantry, echoed Gaylord.

“I think our team’s going to win because our volunteers are really attentive and pay attention to details,” Boller said.

Kabela agreed, adding, “Our volunteers are going to win because they always come in first for us.”

Staff at the North Liberty Community Pantry planned and assembled five events for the three teams.

And the winner is…

The Coralville Community Food Pantry took home the prize!

But, of course, pantry staff know the real winners are the volunteers fighting to end food insecurity on a daily basis in their communities.