Handmade bowls are vessels for helping homeless, hungry

Kimberley McGee

Friday, March 29, 2002 | 3:12 a.m.

WEEKEND EDITION

With an abundance of empty bowls, the Nevada Clay Guild fills a local charity's coffers with ample funds and hope.

For the second year the Empty Bowl Benefit Luncheon and Auction offers stoneware, a soup lunch and entertainment for the Las Vegas Catholic Worker charity April 6 at Green Valley High School.

"This is a school event that has grown from an idea we learned as an art class a few years ago," said Donna Potter, chairwoman of the Green Valley High School art department. "It really brings everyone together."

The idea behind Empty Bowl began in 1990 in Michigan by high school art students and teachers who wanted to assist homeless in their area.

It has spread to more than 1,000 schools nationwide that have joined the Imagine/RENDER Group, a nonprofit organization in Michigan that oversees the Empty Bowl project.

Potters make ceramic bowls throughout the year and choose a day to sell the bowls with soup and bread to guests. Luncheon patrons pay $12 for a bowl that they can keep as a token of their contribution in the efforts to assuage world hunger.

"The empty bowl is supposed to remind you of all the empty bowls in the world throughout the year and what you did to help," Potter said.

In Las Vegas, members of the Nevada Clay Guild and students at Green Valley High have created nearly 1,000 hand-thrown ceramic bowls that will be sold at the benefit to raise money for Catholic Worker and its ministry.

A silent auction offering other pottery items will also raise funds for the charity in Las Vegas.

Local artists and students have contributed pottery, platters, bowls, teapots and vases. Last year the auction raised more than $2,000 for Catholic Worker.

The art, music and home economic departments at Green Valley High have pitched in to help with the event, Potter said. Students will play classical music, provide beverages and create a special dessert for all those attending, Potter said.

The earth-toned dishes are hand-painted and baked by each potter. Each stoneware bowl is slightly larger than the average cereal bowl and range in color, size and shape.

"People put a lot of work into them just to give them away for a good cause," Potter said. "We hope to do it again next year at Chaparral High School."

The luncheon is Catholic Worker's largest fund-raiser of the year, Julia Occhiogrosso, founder of Las Vegas Catholic Worker, said. The 16-year-old charity assists the poor and homeless in getting back on their feet.

"It's a very personal connection," Occhiogrosso said. "These kids and artists have a personal interest in helping the community."

Members of Catholic Worker Hospitality House donate their time and skill to prepare and transport the thick soups and mounds of bread to the high school.

Battista's Hole in the Wall restaurant has donated minestrone, and Occhiogrosso will supply chili, lentil and chicken soup to the soiree.

By filling the bellies of those who attend, Catholic Worker hopes to expand its building at 500 W. Van Buren Ave.

The event pulled in $10,000 total for Catholic Worker in 2001, and the charity expects to receive $15,000 this year.

"We rely on donations, and this is a fun way to give to the community while they help us," Occhiogrosso said. "We serve people."