Talbot County Empty Bowls is a local grassroots organization that, over 12 years, has distributed more than $230,000 to local organizations that feed the hungry.
“In January our committee volunteers are usually selling tickets for the annual community dinner,” says Anna Harding, founder and co-chair for Talbot County Empty Bowls. “The dinner, which is usually held annually in February, has been a mainstay of our fundraising efforts.”
Other activities related to the fundraising have included bowl painting at Kiln Born Creations, where community members added their creative flair to bowls that were donated for the community dinner. The committee also relied on a collection of donors and sponsors who have contributed funds every year.
After the February 2020 dinner, the Talbot County Empty Bowls committee decided that they would take a break from hosting the annual dinner. The group continued its commitment to eliminating food insecurity and to raising awareness about hunger in Talbot County.
Even though the Talbot County Empty Bowls community dinner will not be held this year, supporters are invited to purchase a virtual ticket by making donations to the Mid Shore Community Foundation’s Talbot Empty Bowls fund.
“The Mid-Shore Community Foundation maintains the Talbot County Empty Bowls fund that we established with them in 2009,” says Harding. “Even after we announced that we would no longer host an annual dinner, many of our supporters made donations to our MSCF account so that we can carry on the tradition of making donations to local food pantries in the spring.”
Susan duPont, co-chair of the Talbot County Empty Bowls committee, says, “Not long after our 2020 dinner COVID-19 hit our community. Now, more than ever, our local food pantries need our support.”
Instead of purchasing an actual ticket to the soup dinner, the Talbot County Empty Bowls committee is asking friends of the cause to buy a virtual ticket. “Your $20 donation will boost the Talbot County Empty Bowls fund and ensure that we have money to pass on to the non-profit organizations that feed the hungry all year long,” duPont explains. “We welcome donations from past dinner guests and any of our neighbors who want to join us in helping our local food pantries in their essential work.
“The successes of Talbot County Empty Bowls have depended on the generosity of so many people in our community,” duPont says. “Even though we won’t be enjoying a meal together this year, we hope that you will serve yourself a bowl of soup on Sunday, February 28. Use one of the bowls you acquired from an Empty Bowls dinner if you attended one with us. Together we will savor the food and the progress we have made to eliminate hungry in Talbot County.”
To purchase a $20 virtual ticket and to make donations of any size, visit mscf.org/donate; designate Talbot Empty Bowls as the fund name. You can also donate by mailing a check payable to Talbot Empty Bowls to Mid Shore Community Foundation, 102 E. Dover Street, Easton, MD 21601.
Write a Letter to the Editor on this Article
We encourage readers to offer their point of view on this article by submitting the following form. Editing is sometimes necessary and is done at the discretion of the editorial staff.