BELLOWS FALLS, Vt. – The 28th Empty Bowls soup supper to benefit Our Place Community Food Center will be held Saturday, Oct. 24, at 5 p.m., at Kurn Hattin Home and School for Children.
Tickets are now on sale for the dinner and auction event that includes a social hour featuring local beer and wine, a supper of signature soups prepared by local restaurants and chefs, silent and live auctions of items and services donated by local businesses and individuals, and the launch of the Our Place Holiday Basket program. Attendees will take home a handmade ceramic bowl as a memento of the evening.
Tickets are on sale online at the center’s website, www.ourplacevermont.org/events.
“This year it is more important than ever for everyone to invest in making sure no one goes hungry in our community,” said Our Place Director Dave Billings. “Right now, we are facing new and significant challenges. We are seeing a dramatic increase in the number of people visiting Our Place for a meal or some groceries. Food and operational costs are skyrocketing for us just like for other businesses and families. Meanwhile, grant funding is down, way down. The end result is we have a gap, a gap that is getting bigger every month, between the number of people who need our help and what we have to offer. The community has the power to fix this. Working together, through events like this and at every opportunity, we can raise the money to build the safety network our community needs. We need more support from every corner: individuals at events, our generous donors, our business partners, and appropriations from the towns to make this work.”
Proceeds from the Empty Bowls fundraiser support the food programs of Our Place, including the food pantry, healthy breakfasts and lunches five days a week, and grocery deliveries to homebound seniors.
Located at 4 Island Street in Bellows Falls, the mission of Our Place is to connect people to food and each other. The nonprofit organization serves families in the greater Rockingham and surrounding areas, as well as Walpole and North Walpole, N.H. Further information is available by contacting Our Place at 802-463-2217, emailing info@ourplacevermont.org, or by finding Our Place on Facebook.