Before We Celebrate Yours,
We Celebrate Ours.
Here’s how Partyman’s annual Funner Olympics reflects the culture, connection, and people behind every unforgettable event.
Every weekend, our team has the privilege of helping people celebrate some of life’s biggest moments throughout Rochester, the Finger Lakes, and Upstate New York.
Weddings where happy tears are almost guaranteed. Corporate events months in the making. Fundraisers that bring communities together. Backyard celebrations that turn into memories people talk about for years.
When guests arrive, they see beautifully prepared food, polished service, and a team working together so seamlessly that everything feels effortless.
What they don’t always see are the people behind it all.
The early mornings were spent loading trucks before sunrise. The planners are fine-tuning timelines. The chefs are carefully preparing every menu. The warehouse team is making sure every rental is exactly where it needs to be. The bartenders, servers, dish team, coordinators, and office staff all play a role in making each event a success.
Creating exceptional experiences takes more than talent. It takes trust, teamwork, and most importantly, it takes people who genuinely enjoy working alongside one another.
That’s why, once every summer, we pause the events and celebrate something a little closer to home.
Our people.
The Partyman Funner Olympics:
More Than a Day of Games
The Partyman Funner Olympics has become one of our favorite traditions.
What started as a way to bring our team together has grown into an annual celebration that many of us look forward to all year long. Every summer, departments mix together, color teams are formed, friendly rivalries begin, and competitive spirits suddenly appear in people you’d never expect.
During the event, teams take on a variety of challenges, puzzles, games, and activities that require creativity, communication, and plenty of teamwork. Some events test strategy. Others reward quick thinking; a few simply guarantee a lot of laughter.
Yes, there’s competition.
Yes, everyone wants to win.
But somewhere between the team chants, high-fives, and inside jokes, you realize the day was never really about the scoreboard.
It’s about spending time together without an event timeline to follow.
It’s about getting to know the people you don’t always see day to day… the ones you might not cross paths with often because you’re in another department, on a different schedule, or working different events on the weekends.
It’s about strengthening relationships that carry into every wedding, gala, fundraiser, and celebration we serve throughout the year.
Because the strongest teams aren’t built only during events.
They’re built in moments like these.
Behind the Partyman Funner Olympics:
Games Built Around Teamwork and Hospitality
If you’ve never experienced the Partyman Funner Olympics before, you might imagine the usual field-day games.
That’s not quite our style.
Each challenge is thoughtfully designed around the work we do every day, the values we share, and the teamwork it takes to create exceptional events.
One moment, teammates are weaving through a sea of “wedding guests” while balancing catering trays loaded with glassware during Last Call: The Catering Tray Gauntlet, testing the same steady hands and composure our event staff rely on every weekend. The next, they’re decoding whispered instructions to recreate a perfectly styled tablescape in Setting an Example, proving just how important clear communication is when bringing an event design to life.
Some challenges celebrate the skills behind the scenes. Fold Frenzy puts warehouse-worthy napkin-folding techniques to the test, while “Um, Actually…” invites teammates to show off their Partyman knowledge—with a healthy dose of humor, of course, complete with oversized nerd glasses and the required opening line: “Um, actually…”
Others encourage teams to think creatively, solve problems together, and embrace the unexpected. Whether uncovering hidden messages during Grit & Chew, sneaking snacks past an inflatable-paddle-wielding chef in Whack-A-Snacker, or tackling our final relay, From Grit to Glory, every challenge is designed to remind us that success rarely comes from one person. It comes from trusting your teammates, communicating well, and having a little fun along the way.
The games may look silly from the outside—and honestly, some of them absolutely are—but underneath the laughter is something much more meaningful. Every challenge celebrates the qualities that make our team successful long after the Funner Olympics are over: collaboration, creativity, resilience, adaptability, and a willingness to jump in wherever you’re needed.
And occasionally…a willingness to dive face-first into a pie tin full of whipped cream.
Investing in the Heartbeat of Partyman:
Our Catering Team and Company Culture
As a full-service Rochester catering company, hospitality isn’t your typical nine-to-five.
It means early mornings, late nights, weekends, holidays, and long days spent making sure someone else’s celebration is everything they imagined. It’s incredibly rewarding work, but it also asks a lot of the people who do it.
At Partyman, we believe taking care of our team is just as important as taking care of our clients.
That’s why building a strong company culture isn’t something we leave to chance. It’s something we intentionally invest in.
Whether someone works in the kitchen, the warehouse, event planning, rentals, sales & marketing, accounting, or service, every role matters. Every person contributes to the experience our clients remember.
Events like the Funner Olympics create space to reconnect, recharge, and build relationships across departments that don’t always have the opportunity to work side by side.
Because when people know each other beyond their job titles, collaboration becomes easier. Communication becomes stronger. Trust comes naturally. And those things have a way of showing up when it matters most.
The People Behind Our People:
The Heart of Our Hospitality Team
One of the most meaningful parts of the Funner Olympics happens away from the games themselves.
Throughout the day, spouses, partners, children, and loved ones join us as spectators, cheering from the sidelines and spending time with the Partyman family.
While they aren’t competing in the challenges, their presence is an important reminder that no one in hospitality does this alone.
The long weekends. The holiday events. The late-night load-outs. The early alarm clocks.
Behind every event professional is someone who supports them through it all.
This day is just as much about recognizing those families as it is celebrating our employees.
It’s also a chance to recognize the people who help make our culture possible year-round. Through employee appreciation initiatives, team-building opportunities, and our dedicated Culture Club, we continue looking for ways to create a workplace where people feel valued, connected, and proud to be part of something bigger than themselves.
Because culture isn’t built in a single event.
It’s built in the moments between them.
Why Team Culture Matters in Hospitality
The Funner Olympics isn’t just about proving that we know how to have fun. It’s about investing in the relationships that make our team stronger every day.
In hospitality, every event depends on people working together. Planners rely on chefs. Chefs rely on the warehouse team. Bartenders rely on servers. Every department plays a role, and every successful event is the result of countless people communicating, adapting, and supporting one another behind the scenes.
Events like the Funner Olympics give us the chance to strengthen those relationships in a different setting. They create opportunities to connect with coworkers outside of event days, get to know teammates from other departments, and build the kind of trust that naturally carries into our work.
The result isn’t just a fun day together; it’s a stronger team.
Our clients may never know about the conversations shared over lunch, the laughs during a team challenge, or the friendly rivalries that come with the day’s competitions. But they do experience the outcome. They experience a team that communicates clearly, solves problems together, and genuinely enjoys working alongside one another.
As Joe often says, the heartbeat of Partyman has always been its people. We couldn’t agree more.
Inside the 5th Annual Partyman Funner Olympics:
Highlights, Rivalries, and Team Spirit
Every mid-season celebration brings its own stories, and this year’s 5th Annual Funner Olympics gave us plenty to talk about.
The competition was fierce from the very first challenge, with Team Red and Team Green battling it out throughout the evening. Captain Kass of Team Blue proved to be a formidable competitor, taking on just about anyone who stood in her way. The friendly competition had teammates cheering just as loudly from the sidelines as they were on the field.
And then there was the relay race.
Somewhere between the excitement and the finish line, Red Team’s captain fully committed to the challenge by enthusiastically planting her entire face into a pie tin of whipped cream. It wasn’t exactly graceful, but it was memorable, and judging by the laughter from everyone watching, completely worth it.
When all the points were tallied, it looked like Team Red and Team Green had finished in a dead heat. Naturally, the only reasonable solution was an intense, winner-takes-all game of Rock, Paper, Scissors that had the entire crowd watching.
…Until the referees discovered a scoring mix-up.
As it turns out, a few results had accidentally been entered backwards, meaning Team Red had already earned the championship outright. The dramatic tiebreaker wasn’t needed after all, but it certainly made for one of the funniest moments of the day.
Meanwhile, Team Blue proudly took home the Cream of the Crop Award for bringing unmatched energy, enthusiasm, and team spirit from start to finish.
If there’s one thing this year’s Funner Olympics proved, it’s that while everyone enjoys a little friendly competition, the best part of the day has never been the final score. It’s the memories, the laughter, and the stories we’ll still be telling long after the trophies have been put away.
Celebrating the People Behind Every Partyman Event
Our clients invite us into some of the most meaningful days of their lives, and we never take that responsibility lightly.
Behind every beautifully plated meal, carefully planned timeline, perfectly arranged table, and seamless event is a team of people who care deeply about what they do—and about one another.
The Funner Olympics is our chance to pause, celebrate those people, and thank the families, teammates, leaders, and supporters who make this work possible.
Because before we celebrate yours…
We take a moment to celebrate ours.
And that’s something worth cheering for.
Looking for More Than Just a Job?
The best events start with great people, and we’re always looking for those who are passionate about hospitality, teamwork, and creating unforgettable experiences.
If you’re searching for a workplace where you’ll be supported, challenged, celebrated, and surrounded by people who genuinely enjoy what they do, we’d love to meet you.
See what it’s like to be part of the team behind the celebrations.
Photos above were taken by:
