Local potters, soup-makers contribute to CCAC’s Empty Bowls fundraiser

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

The Charles City Arts Center raised about $900 — which it will split with Messiah Food Pantry in Charles City — during its annual Empty Bowls fundraiser on Saturday.

For $15, customers could have a bowl of hot soup and take the locally hand-crafted bowl home with them. The event has been going on for about 15 years. Bowls unsold Saturday will be placed online for purchase by the end of this week for anyone interested who couldn’t attend in person. Look for the bowls on the CCAC website, charlescityarts.org.

For the last two years, the CCAC hasn’t been able to hold the gathering in person, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the empty bowls were sold online. Online bowl sales the last couple of years raised about $1,600 two years ago and $1,700 last year.

The variety of soups, made by CCAC volunteers, included chili, potato soup, chicken enchilada soup, mushroom soup and tortellini soup. There was also be cornbread, scones and biscuits offered to go with the soup, a variety of beverages and some dessert bars.

All local potters created the bowls this year, including Bill Mateer, Alisa Engelhardt Smith, Peggy Huinker-Cornick, Yoshiko Johnson, Doug Reynolds, Barbara Thomsen, Alyssa Ellis, Pamala Coffey, Meredith Hamm, Noah Orthel, Rowyn Schmidt, Sue Wyborny, Emma Zirbel and Emily Kiewel.

A total of 115 bowls were available, all made by local and regional potters, all donated.