Alive Community Outreach and The Shepherd’s Hand, Inc. have been chosen as this year’s co-recipients for the annual Empty Bowls fundraiser. Tickets are on sale now, and only 350 are available. The fundraiser dinner and silent auction will take place on Oct. 20.
There were 11 applications by nonprofits to be recipients this year, with most mentioning the effect that COVID-19 had on their ability to feed the hungry. Neither of the two organizations chosen has been a recipient of Empty Bowls funds in the past.
Alive Community Outreach prepares a weekly Wednesday community meal which feeds 95 people a month on average. They also offer a food distribution day on the third Thursday of the month, when they prepare boxes or bags of food for up to 175 families to feed approximately 500 people each month. Alive Outreach serves anyone who has food insecurity.
The Shepherd’s Hand, Inc works with local churches, senior citizen centers, schools, and other organizations to “perform community outreaches aimed at ministering to the body, while seeking to minister to the soul.” The food portion of this outreach began after a grandmother raising her great-grandchildren mentioned that she didn’t know how she was going to feed everyone that night. So in 2020, Shepherd’s Hand began providing food to local grandparents raising grandchildren. It has now grown to feed anyone in need. Every Tuesday, boxes of food are provided to families, averaging feeding 457 people per week.
The Empty Bowls is scheduled for 5-7 p.m. Oct. 20 at Sts. Joseph & Paul Parish Hall (514 East 4th Street) and is presented by Five Star Food Service. Only 350 tickets will be available for the event. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased in advance by visiting eboky.org/tickets. Any remaining tickets will be made available at the door the evening of the event.
A ticket allows attendees to select from hundreds of handcrafted bowls made specifically for this event by local artisans, community members, and students of Brescia University. Brescia’s Art Department supplied some of the clay and glaze as well as a location for the bowls to be created. Each participant at the event will receive one of numerous soups made available by local restaurants, chefs and churches.
As in years past, a silent auction will also be held. Any person or organization wishing to donate an item or basket for the silent auction is encouraged to reach out to the committee at [email protected]. All donations to Empty Bowls are tax-deductible.
The committee is also still looking for sponsorships. Tiers are available from $250 and up. Information and an online registration form can be found by visiting eboky.org/sponsors.
Last year, $16,000 was raised and awarded to the Daniel Pitino Shelter, which feeds approximately 30,000 people in the greater Owensboro community annually.
According to a release, “Empty Bowls is a grassroots movement to help end hunger. … One hundred percent of the proceeds stay in the community and go to local food pantries. The goal of the movement is to raise money to help organizations fight hunger, raise awareness about the issues of hunger and food security, and to help bring about an attitude that will not allow hunger to exist.”
