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Empty Bowls – Decorah

After a brief hiatus in 2014, Empty Bowls will be taking place, once again, in Decorah. The popular meal of locally donated soup and bread will be Sunday, April 19th, at the Hotel Winneshiek, Steyer Opera House from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. For a $20 donation, attendees get to enjoy a simple meal and select and take home one of the many beautiful, handcrafted bowls made by area potters. Proceeds from Empty Bowls will go to local food pantries and other programs that alleviate hunger in the community.

The 2015 Empty Bowls will include a special tribute to potter George Lowe, who began the program in Decorah eight years ago and was a driving force behind it for many years. Area restaurants and bakers are again responding generously to Empty Bowls. “We are lucky to have a community as supportive as Decorah to get this program back off the ground,” says Peace and Justice Center Administrator Erin Ryan. “Without everyone who is responding to our call for volunteers and donations, we would never be able to continue this important event.”

Community support for past Empty Bowl events in Decorah has always been enthusiastic and contagious, and those efforts continue into 2015.

Joe Madrigal of Luther College’s Visual and Performing Arts Department has organized a bowl making marathon. Jenni and Eric Petersen-Brandt of ArtHaus and Rachelle Branum of the Clay Studio are hosting community bowl-glazing events in February and March. These events are free and open to the public.

Empty Bowls has been well received in Decorah, but it is not unique to the community. The Empty Bowls website states, “Empty Bowls is an international grassroots effort to fight hunger and was created by The Imagine Render Group. The basic premise is simple: Potters and other craftspeople, educators and others work with the community to create handcrafted bowls. Guests are invited to a simple meal of soup and bread. In exchange for a cash donation, guests are asked to keep a bowl as a reminder of all the empty bowls in the world. The money raised is donated to an organization working to end hunger and food insecurity.”

Upon learning that Empty Bowls was not taking place last year, Decorah resident, Randall Duvall, determined that this was a project too good to see disappear.

He began the task of organizing and recruiting volunteers and potters. Empty Bowls is now sponsored and organized by the Northeast Iowa Peace and Justice Center with the assistance of many area individuals. Hotel Winneshiek is the special 2015 Event Sponsor for Empty Bowls.

For more information or to volunteer, please contact Erin at the Northeast Iowa Peace and Justice Center: 563-382-3887, or email neipjc@gmail.com.

Follow us along the way on our Facebook page – Empty Bowls – Decorah.

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