The Los Banos Arts Council and Rotary Club sponsored the fifth annual Empty Bowls project Tuesday at the Ted Falasco Arts Center, with a big assist from students of Los Banos Junior High School, and Los Banos and Pacheco high schools.
About 500 community members paid to eat and take home ceramic bowls, which represents the empty bowl of someone in need of food. The exact amount of money raised at Empty Bowls was not available at press time.
People who purchased tickets received a paper bowl full of soup and an empty ceramic one as a souvenir.
Colleen Menefee, who is a Rotarian and a member of the Arts Council, said she was pleased with the event. “I think it’s turned out beautiful, everyone is eating, mingling,” she said Tuesday.
Empty Bowls featured nine different types of soup made by local restaurants.
Zelia Janis, who dined on clam chowder and chicken noodle soup, said she plans on making attending the event a tradition. “It’s my first time, I will be back,” she said. “I’ll have a collection of bowls.”
Janis said the event’s goal of bringing awareness to hunger is important because of the seemingly increasing numbers of homeless in Los Banos.
Empty Bowls included a video on hunger and a raffle.
Organizers of Empty Bowls plan on giving the proceeds from the event to local groups that feed the poor. Menefee said the Rotary Club will decide later this month which group or groups get the funds.
Students from the city’s two high schools and its junior high made the bowls this year.
Jim Clarke, the teacher who oversees the molding of the bowls at Los Banos Junior High, said it was a big challenge because of the large number of students on campus. “I have a lot of kids this year, and this is the major project,” he said.
Despite all of the work to make the bowls, Clarke said it was worth it as he gazed at the crowd inside the Arts Center.
“It’s a lot of fun to see all the people, it’s really neat,” he said.
Enterprise reporter Corey Pride can be reached at (209) 826-3831, ext. 6563, or [email protected].
