(Photo Provided) Donated items fill the office space of the Marietta Community Foundation Friday afternoon after this year’s “Stock the Shelves” Nonprofit Challenge wrapped up.

The Marietta Community Foundation celebrated National Community Foundation Week this week, bringing to a close its 2025 Nonprofit Challenge.

This year’s theme was “Stock the Shelves,” in which local nonprofits competed to collect the most food and personal care items to be distributed to local food pantries.

The format was chosen before the federal government shutdown pressed pause on SNAP funds at the start of November, said Laney Hitchens, communications and marketing director for the foundation. But in response to the increased need caused by the circumstances, the foundation doubled its quarterly distribution to local food pantries, she said.

The deadline for donations was 4 p.m. Friday. Although final tallies were still being done, Hitchens said participants donated thousands of items.

The Nonprofit Challenge was born 10 years ago as a means of celebrating National Community Foundation Week, itself initiated in 1989 by President George H.W. Bush “to honor the vital role community foundations play in supporting local philanthropy,” according to a release from the foundation.

(Photo Provided) Numerous donors dropped off food and personal care items at the Marietta Community Foundation Friday afternoon as the organization’s “Stock the Shelves” Nonprofit Challenge reached the finish line.

The challenge has grown since then, the release said, thanks to the support of Superior Toyota, which has helped the foundation award more than $233,000 in challenge grants.

“Superior Toyota has been with us since the very beginning,” said Heather Allender, president and CEO of Marietta Community Foundation. “Their belief in what we are doing–and in this community–has made every year of the challenge possible. The impact we have seen over the past 10 years is proof of what can happen when people come together for a shared purpose.”

During the COVID pandemic in 2020 and 2021, the challenge collected thousands of toys and clothing items in back-to-back toy drives for the Washington County Angel Tree Program.

In 2023, the challenge’s Penny War engaged 31 nonprofits, raising over $18,000 for local causes and “showing that even the smallest gifts could create lasting impact,” the release said.

“As we celebrate this milestone, we are reminded that our greatest strength has always been each other,” Allender said. “The Nonprofit Challenge is not just about one week. It is about building a community where generosity is our way of life. Washington County has proven, time and again, that when we come together, incredible things happen.”

(Photo Provided) The Marietta Community Foundation’s “Stock the Shelves” Nonprofit Challenge was already underway when the federal government shutdown paused SNAP benefits for November.