Empty bowls fill need for many in Airdrie
There’s a famous line from the musical “Oliver”, where Oliver Twist stands in front of the stout Mr. Bumble with a bowl in his hands, hoping for second serving of gruel.
“Please sir, can I have some more?”
An empty bowl reminds us of hunger – not only in Charles Dicken’s day but throughout the modern world right now. And that includes right here in Airdrie.
With the current economic slump, the demands on Food Banks throughout Alberta is great. Keeping the shelves stocked this year has been a challenge which is why the Airdrie Food Bank is asking for help.
One way Airdrie residents can assist is by attending the 10th Annual Airdrie Empty Bowl Arts Festival on Saturday, Sept. 10 at the Food Bank from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. This event is part fundraiser for the Food Bank and part donor appreciation event which that takes place annually around the world. Donated pottery bowls, created by local artisans, filled with locally-made soup, also donated, are sold for $20 which is the suggested donation. Donations over and above this amount are gratefully appreciated. Many of the bowls are created during separate fundraising events in support of the arts community in Airdrie and area as well as the Food Bank.
Empty Bowl Festival origins
Empty Bowl events have been held throughout the world for the past 26 years. The first was in Michigan when a high school art teacher was looking for a creative way for his students to get involved with a food drive. Throwing bowls and decorating them in the classroom as a contribution to a fundraising meal was what the teacher and students came up with. At the fundraiser, guests “purchased” a bowl of soup and could then keep the bowl. The bowl would serve as a reminder that while many are able to purchase a bowl of soup whenever they wanted, there was hunger in the world.
The idea caught on, and today Empty Bowl events are fundraisers that have raised millions of dollars for soup kitchens as well as Food Banks and other charitable organizations that fight hunger.
Spokespeople at the Airdrie Food Bank say the Empty Bowl Festival on Sept. 10 will be more than a fundraiser. It will also serve as a thank you to the Airdrie community for its support year-round.
In addition to bowls of soup, there will be children’s activities, demonstrations by local pottery artisans, live music and a silent auction.
The Airdrie Food Bank first held an Empty Bowls Festival in 2007 and it was a hit. The following year they obtained a Canada Heritage grant which enabled them to expand and attract more festival-goers, increasing the number of bowls they were able to sell.
By 2013, the year of the Alberta floods, the Airdrie Food Bank used the festival to support other communities in need throughout the province. The event had been held in Nose Creek Park until last year when it was moved to the Airdrie Food Bank’s new facility at 20 East Lake Way.