The Empty Bowl Project
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What do you see when you look at this bowl? Do you see it as countless hours of craftsmanship, carefully sculpting it, painting it, glazing it. The time it spent in the kiln, hardening it, readying it for it's final form. Or maybe you see it as a future cereal bowl, or snack dish, or key bowl; maybe as a decorative piece to be put on the shelf. Unfortunately for many in our community, they see this for exactly what it is, an empty bowl. This is a sad sight that has become all to familiar for many families across York County.
The Empty Bowl Project is a grass roots campaign with ties to both local food banks and international hunger fighting organizations. The premise is simple. Craftsman, schools, and artists get together to create hand made bowls, with the shapes, sizes, and potential uses in as much variety as the number of colors used to decorate them. The bowls are sold, usually combined with a simple dinner of soup and bread and sometimes entertainment. To the people who benefit from the program, it means so much more. All donations are split between two different charities, a national hunger fighting agency and a local food bank.
Recently this grass roots campaign found a home locally, in Southern York Middle School. The students taking the art class would spend the pain staking hours it takes to fashion the bowls, while the students in the cooking class provided the chili and soup dinner. The art students are given the option of purchasing their own bowl for $10 or donating it for the yearly event. Along with the free dinner with bowl purchase, attendees get to enjoy a jazz concert performance from the Southern York Middle School Jazz Band.
On April 7, 2011 they held their signature event, inviting the community and the parents of all of the students to join them in making a difference. After a brief stroll through a veritable trail of bowls. Guests were greeted by students before picking up their tasty chili and choosing between a variety of breads. For dessert, a bake sale was offered with everything from cupcakes to brownies, and to wash it all down, was refreshing lemonade. The event has a great turn out, and raised over $4,000, with $2,000 of that going to support the work of the York County Food Bank. A special thanks to Trisha Coggins who brought the program to Southern York Middle School, and whom was instrumental in its success each year.
