By Isaiah Narraway
April 23, 2025
HUNTINGTON, W. Va. (WMUL-FM) — Hundreds of handcrafted bowls and a mission to fight hunger brings Huntington and Marshall’s communities together for this year’s Empty Bowls Fundraiser, scheduled for May 2 from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. at the Pullman Square Gazebo in downtown Huntington.
Local potters, students and volunteers have spent months creating unique ceramic bowls, each symbolizing the empty plates of those in need, with a bigger impact than you may think.
“The amount of meals that the food bank could provide on one dollar was nine meals,” Professor Frederick Bartolovitch said. “Each bowl being 20 dollars, it ends up being 180 meals per bowl. Last year we raised over 15,000 dollars just through selling bowls.”
He explained that the empty bowls initiative is far from a small one-off fundraiser as it’s been a national event since it was started in the 1990s by a high school art teacher named John Hartom.
The event has resonated with those who participated and has inspired generations of potters to affect change in their local communities through events of their own or through the initiative.
Bartolovitch believes such events are vital in raising awareness and affecting change in a way even beyond the scope of Empty Bowls.
“I think that’s so vital right now in this time where there’s issues in benefits with the SNAP program and funding for the food bank,” he said. “The resources for these sorts of things are not as well funded as they were even just a couple years ago.”
With each bowl serving as a reminder of hunger in our community, Empty Bowls proves that a simple act of giving can make a lasting impact.