A group of about twenty dedicated artisans at Oakton Community College work year round to fashion ceramic bowls not to sell for their own gain nor to keep, but as a means of generating cash for a food pantries and soup kitchens in the area.
The first Saturday in December this year marks the 12th annual Empty Bowls at Oakton event. Attendees can both knock off a few gifts on their Christmas lists and contribute to a worthy cause by buying a hand-crafted ceramic bowl — the vast majority of which are made by the members of Oakton Ceramics Club — and sitting down for a simple meal of soup in Styrofoam bowl, a cup of lemonade and a chunk of bread, said Bud Sents, a longtime member of the college art club.
The bowls are priced at $15 each and all proceeds from the event benefit five food pantries and one soup kitchen located within OCC’s boundaries. Attendees also have the opportunity to purchase raffle tickets to win pieces of ceramic artistry or simply purchase other art for sale at the event, which is hosted at the college’s Des Plaines campus.
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Last year, the event brought in over $31,000 and, in total, the annual one day sale has generated over $200,000 for charities since its inception, Sents said.
The group receives $7,000 from OCC student fees which provides for both food — provided by the college’s cafeteria — publicity and the cost to hire a live musical act, he said. Wisconsin based folk-duo, Patchouli, will serve as this year’s audible entertainment at the event, Sents said.
It’s a simple event, he said, and that was done on purpose.
“The logo we use is ‘Everybody’s bowl is empty at some point,” he said. “So we want people to experience something similar to what people get at a soup kitchen. We want them to select a (ceramic) bowl, and the bowl is not what the soup is served in — the soup is served in Styrofoam.”
The event is a local iteration of a national, grass roots movement called “The Empty Bowls Project.” Professor of art at OCC, Lou Pierozzi said one of the Ceramics Club members approached him about a dozen years ago after hearing about the project and suggested Oakton participate in it.
“We started small, in the cafeteria, we had a few hundred bowls and we made about $5,000 the first time we did it,” Pierozzi said. With every passing year, the event grew, he said.
Susan Murphy, director of Interfaith Action in Evanston, said her organization, which serves at least two meals everyday to the homeless, received $9,000 of the proceeds from last year’s Empty Bowls at Oakton event.
“It’s huge. It’s so helpful,” she said of the donation. Murphy said Interfaith Action, which is operated largely by volunteers from various religious congregations receives no state funding and exists solely on donations.
“The one that comes from (Empty Bowls at Oakton) is a huge one for us,” she said.
The Self-Help Closet and Pantry of Des Plaines, another organization that collects a portion of the Empty Bowls proceeds, also receives no government funding, said the nonprofit’s executive director, Debra Walusiak.
Walusiak said the Self-Help Closet and Pantry relies on donations of non-perishable food items from the community.
“When we run out of donated food, we purchase it, so the money from Empty Bowls allows us to be able to replenish ourselves at times throughout the year when the donated supply might run low,” she said.
Pierozzi said the Oakton Ceramics Club members, who range in age from 18 to 80, are dedicated to continuing their efforts in the cause, each donating about 14 hours a month to making the bowls.
“There’s so much hard work and volunteer time that goes into this event,” he said. “(They) really work all year long to make this go off without a hitch.”
Empty Bowls will take place at the Des Plaines campus of OCC, 1600 East Golf Road, from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Dec. 5.
Lee V. Gaines is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.