With bags of food in hand, more than 400 members and friends of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints crossed the finish line of the second annual Northeast Mesa Grocery Run.
Participants ran to a nearby park in Mesa, Arizona, filled grocery bags with donated food items and carried them back across the finish line.
Organized by the Mesa Arizona Hermosa Vista Stake, the event combined fitness, service and community. Carrying the bags symbolized the physical and emotional effort involved in caring for others.
By the end of the Feb. 21 event, volunteers had collected six truckloads of food for the local Methodist food pantry. The donations replenished pantry shelves and continue to provide essential support to individuals and families experiencing food insecurity.
Carol Tingey, a JustServe specialist for the Hermosa Vista stake, said one of the event’s greatest impacts has been raising awareness of community needs.
“People know another place to donate or help,” she said. “Another thing that creates awareness is that we are all here to work together. It doesn’t matter what religion, we are all trying to help feed God’s children.”
Latter-day Saints across Arizona are still finding creative ways to combine community races with food drives that strengthen relationships and help local families.
The Phoenix Arizona Desert Hills Stake in Anthem hosted its second annual “5K to Feed the 5K” on March 28.
The race was inspired by the New Testament account of Jesus Christ feeding the five thousand with five loaves and two fish. To keep the focus on the Savior’s example of caring for others, the registration fee was 10 cans of food per participant.
All donated food went to the local Catholic food pantry, St. Vincent de Paul.
“There was a palpable feeling of community and cooperation in the air this year at the 5K,” said Rhonda Lucas, member of the Deseret Hills stake and founder of the event.
More than 130 runners participated, contributing hundreds of food donations for families in need.
After the race, participants returned to the stake center, where they toured rooms filled with artwork depicting the Savior and scenes from His life. Many described the displays as “simple, yet powerful.”
“The most important impact from this event was that our ward was able to work with the Catholic food pantry to make a difference together,” said Lucas. “I think we all learned to appreciate each other more and hopefully will be able to continue to work together to make a difference in the future.”
Together, the two events provided thousands of food donations, strengthened community partnerships and invited participants to put their faith into action through service.
