This year's 15th anniversary potluck brings new, exciting ways for you to help your community this holiday season - silent auction serving bowls, bulk pledges, and potters galore.
Welcome to Martin Empty Bowls! This November marks the 15th year of the Martin Empty Bowls potluck, and to celebrate we have found new ways to support our neighbors and grow our Empty Bowls community.
"As a potter and art professor, I am not in a philanthropic position to write big checks to food banks. Even if I were, hunger issues in our country are community issues deserving community responses." - David McBeth
Each year, more and more individuals get involved with the fundraiser. This past September, eight students, alumni and current, met in the studio for a Bowl-a-thon. Community members and colleagues organize soup and cracker donations, and local businesses buy bowls in bulk for their employee holiday parties.
Fighting Hunger One Bowl at a Time
The morning of the Bowl-a-thon, as David sat at his wheel, watching the students gather into the studio and slowly take a seat at the wheels, he noticed that each student had unintentionally chosen the wheel he or she spent countless hours at as a student. With this year's addition of bowl pledges and special silent auction bowls, the extra 16 hands has been a wonderful help in the organization's goal of 1,500 bowls this year. Since the beginning, student artists have volunteered their time to throwing bowls for the potluck.
"We are always going to make time for this because it's important, and you make time for what's important. Empty Bowls is an opportunity not only connect with the community through hand made bowls, but is also an opportunity to give back to the community." - Victoria Falcon, volunteer potter & alumnus
And over the years, David and his students have created enough bowls to help raise almost $75,000 for WE CARE Ministries' food pantry that provides food and other assistance to Weakley County.
The Empty Bowls Blessing
Thank you for emptying our hearts of indifference and pride so that we can be filled with compassion and mercy for others.
Thank you for emptying our hearts of indifference and pride so that we can be filled with compassion and mercy for others.
Thank you for emptying our heads of fears and myths about poverty so that we can be filled with courage and vision for peace.
Thank you for emptying the bowls of our overflowing lives so that we can be filled with the desire to work for truth and justice.
Thank you for all these hungers that make us mindful of the needs of others.
Join us November 17th, 2019 from 11am - 1pm for soup, bowls, and fellowship!
Student Life Center, UT Martin Campus: 199 Moody Ave, Martin, TN 28238