Empty Bowls event returns to feed Lane County’s hungry

Quick Take:

Food For Lane County’s annual Empty Bowls fundraiser returns May 2 at 5th Street Market Alley, continuing a 31-year tradition of selling handmade bowls to fight hunger.

Bowls, specifically empty bowls, are emblematic of not having food. That symbolism drives the intent behind Food For Lane County’s annual fundraising event, Empty Bowls, which will be held May 2 at Fifth Street Market Alley.

At that event, customers can purchase handmade bowls donated by local artists and crafters. Bowls are priced at $10 and up.

Empty Bowls, which has been a staple event for Food For Lane County for the past 31 years (2020 and 2021 were skipped due to the COVID-19 pandemic), got its start at a high school in Michigan in 1990.

“A high school art teacher was trying to help his students find a way to raise money to support a food drive,” said Dawn Marie Woodward, Food For Lane County’s event and media relations coordinator. “What they ended up doing was a class project to make ceramic bowls that they then used at a fundraising meal. The guests were served soup and bread, and they kept their bowls as a reminder.”

By the next year, she said, they developed the concept into what is called Empty Bowls, which is replicated around the world as a means to support organizations fighting hunger.

The first Food For Lane County Empty Bowls event was organized and sponsored by Opus 5, a Eugene-based art gallery.

“When they (Opus 5) closed in 1999, we elected to continue it in partnership with a local group of artists known as Local Clay,” said Woodward.

Since the origin of Empty Bowls locally was art gallery–based, the event is not held in connection with a dinner as with many communities. However, people who purchase bowls get a coupon for a free bowl of soup from participating restaurants.

The sale has been at the Fifth Street Market Alley since 2023 and puts between $12,000 and $15,000 annually into Food For Lane County’s general fund. Last year’s sale raised more than $14,000, Woodward said.

Artists typically donate about 1,000 bowls each year. Some are ceramic, while others are glass or wood.

And it’s not just soup-sized bowls. Shoppers can choose from mugs, pet bowls, large serving bowls, plates, and even complete sets of dishware. They also sometimes have bowls made from yarn.

“(Bowls) start at $10 and are priced accordingly,” Woodward said. “It’s a variety, which allows us to price them at an accessible price point while still honoring the artists who donated them. We couldn’t do this without the artists.”

This year, a sewing group from Crow Applegate Nazarene Church donated fabric bowl cozies. One crafter, Anne Lostrom, donated 150 cozies she made herself.

“I made the 11-inch size, then made the 8-inch size that is perfect for a bowl of ice cream or a mug that is too hot,” Lostrom said.

“I’ve always wanted to donate something. When Melba (Copsey, a fellow sewer from the group) brought this to us, I thought, I can do that.”

Lostrom felt she could contribute despite never having made a cozy before. The only thing she had made with the sewing group was a fabric insert for her parakeet cage.

“When Melba came over to pick them up she said, ‘How many you got?’” Lostrom said, laughing. “When I told her I got to 150, she just about flopped over!”

Woodward said the variety and quality of bowls available makes browsing a lot of fun. She recommends shoppers get there early, because it is first-come, first-served.