For $20, attendees get an all-you-can-eat soup dinner, donated by local restaurants and catering services, and can take home a handmade ceramic bowl created by student artists from Wittenberg and Springfield High School’s art departments.
The event is open to the public and no reservation is required.
Wittenberg has hosted Empty Bowls since 1994, making this year’s event the 32nd annual. According to Professor of Art and Empty Bowls Organizer, Scott Dooley, last year alone the fundraiser made $39,242 — enough to provide nearly 200,000 meals to those suffering from food insecurity. Over its three-decade run, the event has generated more than $705,000 for Second Harvest, equating to nearly four million meals for families across Clark, Champaign, and Logan Counties.
Because food, materials, and volunteer time are largely donated, almost every dollar raised goes directly to the food bank.
The Champaign County event follows from 5-7 p.m. on April 9 with a soup crawl in downtown Urbana. It starts at The Farmer’s Daughter, 904 Miami St., where guests pick up their bowl and a crawl ticket. Stops include Cafe Paradiso, Abuela’s Kitchen, In Good Taste Market, Urbana Brewing Company, Mercy Health Urbana, and The WhereHouse.
Logan County wraps up the series from 5-7 p.m. on April 13 with its own crawl in downtown Bellefontaine, kicking off at The Flying Pepper Cantina, 137 W. Columbus Ave. Participating locations include Brewfontaine, Six Hundred Downtown, 2G’s Barbecue, Sweet Aromas, and the Maxwell.
All three events are $20 per person.
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