Santa Barbara Empty Bowls Returns Nov. 1

Courtesy Santa Barbara Empty Bowls

Courtesy Santa Barbara Empty Bowls

Help to end hunger when one of Santa Barbara’s most beloved events, the annual Santa Barbara Empty Bowls luncheon, returns on Sun., Nov. 1 at the Ben Page Youth Center, 4540 Hollister Ave. Tickets are still available.

Always a unique and fun fundraising event, Empty Bowls benefits the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, which works to eliminate hunger and food insecurity by distributing nutritious food, education and other resources through its own programs and through a network of more than 300 member nonprofit partners and programs in Santa Barbara County.

For a donation of $30 (or more), participants choose a beautiful bowl handcrafted by local ceramic artists, enjoy a simple meal of soup, bread and water, and take home the bowl as a reminder of the meal’s purpose to feed the hungry in our community.

Following the luncheon, attendees may tour the Foodbank Warehouse Facility, located next door from the Page Center at 4554 Hollister Ave. and enjoy a slice of pie and delicious coffee from French Press while touring.

Last year, more than 800 people attended Empty Bowls, which raised $108,109 for the Foodbank. Santa Empty Bowls has donated over $1 million to the Foodbank over the last 17 years to help alleviate hunger in Santa Barbara County and has provided huge community awareness for Foodbank’s mission and work.

The event is hosted by Santa Barbara Empty Bowls Committee: Danyel Dean (Founder), Diane Durst, Cathy Closson, Merrillee Ford Bev Hanna, Donnalyn Karpeles, Nancy Krug, Elizabeth Olson, Laurie Potter, Shanon Sedivy, Linda Shillerstom and Dierdre Woode. Tickets are still available and guests can choose between three seating times: 11 a.m., noon and 1 p.m. For tickets click here. Online registration ends Friday, October 30, but tickets can also be purchased at the door.

For more information, visit foodbanksbc.org.

—Leslie Dinaberg

Originally published in Santa Barbara Seasons Magazine on October 27, 2015.