Empty Bowls fundraiser warms hearts, stomachs
Nov. 18—Both new and repeat supporters of the annual Empty Bowls fundraiser gathered around tables Thursday to share a bowl of soup they say warms the heart as well as the tummy.
"The purpose of today's event, the 10th annual Empty Bowls, provides local hunger relief through four 100% privately funded nonprofit organizations that have a food component to their ministries," said Ruth Willoughby of Watered Gardens, the event coordinator. "So we're here to raise money to feed people."
Those who came to Empire Market on Thursday to support the event could choose their bowl from more than 1,000 made by regional potters with a variety of sizes, glazes and decorations. "Every one of them is unique and beautiful," Willoughby said.
The bowls, filled with soup if desired, were available for a minimum donation of $25.
Cloth cozies to hold the bowls also could be purchased for $5 each, which goes to the cause. Those were sewn by local residents and donated for the effort. Twenty local restaurants each donated 5 gallons of soup to feed those who stopped at the lunch and dinner event that was open 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
In addition to providing food to those in need, Empty Bowls "is a just a very laid-back event where people can come together and have some soup and a bowl," Willoughby said. There was a presale of bowls in late September and early October at which several hundred bowls were sold. That appeals to people who only want a bowl and not soup, Willoughby said.
Proceeds go to the four nonprofits that provide food or meals to people in need. They are We Care of the Four States, Mission Joplin, Hope Kitchen of Neosho and Watered Gardens.
The event was started in 2012 by ceramic artist Heather Grills at what then was her studio, Phoenix Fired Art, 1603 S. Main St. When she closed the studio to move to Northwest Arkansas four years ago, Watered Gardens offered to continue the event.
On Thursday, Terri Kruse came from Adair, Oklahoma, to attend the event and found a bowl with a Route 66 logo to take home. She brought her best friend, her mother, and her mother's best friend, on the hour-and-20-minute ride to Joplin. It was her ninth year attending the event.
"This is a good fundraiser, and you get a beautiful bowl and a cozy. and you get to road-trip," Kruse said. "This is such a great cause, and several places benefit instead of just one organization benefiting, so I love it. The soups are always yummy."
Selecting just the right bowl is almost a job for Goldilocks as participants shopped several tables with a variety of colors and glazing techniques, patterns, size and shape for just that perfect one.
Another supporter, Amber Parker, came with some co-workers on a lunch break to buy a bowl for herself and some other people. There was plenty of selection, she said, "and it's hard to choose. I've been looking around for a while trying to choose them."
It was the third year that Aaron Lee, who works at the Boys & Girls Club of Southwest Missouri in Joplin, had come to the event with some of his co-workers. "We always mark it on the calendar, and we love to come," he said. "I like to help out where I can."
Mark Strayer, a potter from Lamar, has made bowls for the occasion all 10 years. This year, he made about 200.
"I have always had a soft spot for people less fortunate than myself, and this is a great way of giving back," he said. "As a potter, it's in my wheelhouse, and to have fun doing it and see what it becomes here at the Empire Market and knowing that every bowl feeds 15 people" encourages him to make more bowls to spread the experience as far as he can, he said.
