Thursday, March 23, 2017

EMPTY BOWLS FILL STOMACHS

By CHRIS CONNOLLY

Although it may not be noticed by many, hunger does exist in Orange County, even in the town of Washingtonville.  There are an alarming number of families that work tirelessly to meet the needs for survival. All too often, even with hard work, families can not afford a reasonable amount of food to sustain the nutritional needs of their loved ones.   Solving this epidemic is difficult to say the least, but there is a great cause at Washingtonville High School that seeks to tackle it. 

CHRIS CONNOLLY FOR WIZARD WEEKLY
One of the talented Art teachers here at Washingtonville High School, Ms. Lara Held, is a huge part of coordinating an event that is known as The Empty Bowls Project. “The Empty Bowls Project is an international grassroots effort to raise both money and awareness in the fight to end hunger,” Held informed. She went on to explain, “John Hartom and his wife, Lisa Blackburn, started the Empty Bowls concept in the fall of 1990 at Bloomfield Hills Lahser High School in Detroit, Michigan.  Empty Bowls events have been held across the globe and have raised tens of millions of dollars for organizations fighting hunger. These events also raise public awareness about hunger and provide people of all ages the chance to work for positive change in their own communities and beyond. As an artist and teacher of ceramics, I have always had Empty Bowls on my radar.”  It is clear to see the passion that Held has for improving the community’s well being. 

Ms. Held isn’t the only person in collaboration with Empty Bowls.  Kimberly Constable, the high school’s AIS reading teacher, is Washingtonville’s Empty Bowls’ co-chair. She is in charge of organizing all the food, services, goods, donations, and volunteers for the event. Constable is one of the key components for Empty Bowls and is certainly an important reason why it has been such a hit in the past. 

Aside from the teachers, the students play a vital role in the success of Empty Bowls.  Treasa Moscato, an art student in Ms. Held’s class, created a bowl this year. “We were told to make a food-inspired bowl, so my theme was M&M’s. I made my bowl because the issue of hunger, especially in our community, is prevalent.  I think helping people in our community, and even in our school, is pretty awesome.”  Moscato is very intertwined with art and making a difference, so Empty Bowls was the perfect solution for her. 

Other then Treasa’s bowl, there are countless more. Ms. Held elaborated on why there are numerous reasons to buy one.  “When you purchase a bowl, the money you donate goes to the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley with fifty percent of that money earmarked for the Country Kids Food Pantry in Washingtonville via the Food Bank's ‘Adopt-A-Pantry’ Program. Dedicated staff from the Country Kids Food Pantry go to the Food Bank to stock up on food supplies to feed over 350 Washingtonville families. Bowls range from five to twenty five dollars.”  

When a bowl is bought, it isn’t just a bowl, it is a potential chance at life for some. Ending starvation is becoming more achievable with the Empty Bowls program.  Washingtonville’s Empty Bowls dinner and fundraiser, sponsored by the National Art Society,  will be taking place Friday, March 24th from 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm in the high school cafeterias. Buy a bowl, share a meal, and most importantly, save a life!

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