There is a wonderful "grassroots" movement growing around the country with the mission of feeding the hungry, disadvantaged and homeless and it's called  “EMPTY BOWLS.” The effort is based on the international Empty Bowls program, where volunteers create bowls that are used to serve a meal of soup and bread during a fundraiser. The bowls serve as a reminder that there are always empty bowls in the world.

Empty Bowls Clarksville is a community project that supports three non-profit organizations in the Clarksville Area. United Methodist Urban Ministries, Grace Assistance Food Bank, Loaves and Fishes, and the FUEL program all benefit from the annual Empty Bowls event in Clarksville. We are committed to raising awareness of the issue of hunger in the Clarksville-Montgomery County community.  This goal is achieved through our annual fundraising event that supports local food and hunger programs.

Last year the First Annual Clarksville Empty Bowls initiative raised over $ 10,700 helping raise awareness about hunger issues and putting food on the tables of many local families. Much of the Clarksville community pitches in to fill the Empty Bowls:  Local restaurants supply the breads, churches provide desserts, and local businesses and others donate funds for the ingredients to make the homemade soups that are served at the supper.

The 2010 Empty Bowls event will be held on Tuesday, February 23, 2010 from 4:30-7:00 pm. at the Waterstreet Events Center on Riverside Drive in Clarksville.  More than 500 bowls have been made and donated for the upcoming soup supper by artists from the Tennessee Association of Craft Artists, APSU Art Dept. students and local citizens.  A silent auction and a few other fundraising efforts at the event will all go towards supporting Loaves and Fishes, United Methodist Urban Ministries-Grace Assistance Food Pantry and the F.U.E.L program, local programs feeding Clarksville's hungry.

Organizers plan to serve 500 at the 2010 Empty Bowls Event. There will be plenty of comfort food for everyone. This year we are looking forward to having local potters on a wheel crafting bowls while soup is being served and local musicians providing entertainment.