BRATTLEBORO — On behalf of the Empty Bowls Steering Committee, I want to thank the hundreds of people and organizations that helped us raise over $24,000 for the Brattleboro Area Drop-In Center this year at our recent dinner.
One of the most exciting things about this event is that there are virtually no overhead costs, and at the end of the event, we pack up leftover food to go to the Drop-In Center and leftover bowls to pass on to the Bellows Falls Empty Bowls event or to use for next year.
I would like to mention just a few who have helped us for all or most of the seven years of doing this event. I apologize in advance for not being able to include everyone.
Brattleboro Clayworks is the original and key sponsor of this event. The vast majority of bowls are produced, fired, and donated from there, and doing so has become a year-round endeavor.
Billie Stark, in addition to co-chairing Empty Bowls, has made hundreds of bowls over the years. Monica Hastings, another co-chair, is responsible for making sure we have enough bowls and this year solicited more than 1,300 bowls and made hundreds herself. Annie Lauterbach has overseen the many “bowleramas” at the Clayworks that have been offered over the years, has made hundreds of bowls for the event, and been in charge of putting out bowls for the event every year since it began.
Other key contributors of bowls and time from Clayworks include Claudia Teachman (firing coordinator), Willie Finkel, Lucinda Alcorn, Alan Steinberg, Rob Cartelli, Shari Zabriskie, Nancy Riege, Jen Perlowski, Sue Dinolfo, Kate Wylie, Bronna Zlochivar, and Rochelle Prunty. Thanks to other area potters (Laura Zindel, Liz deNiord, Malcolm Wright, 3-Dot Pottery, Walter Slowinski, and others) who contribute every year.
Landmark College and Chartwells Food Service have made the event possible by providing the beautiful space for the event, feeding the students elsewhere on campus the night of the event, and providing soups and a lot of support and enthusiasm.
Landmark sold over $2,000 worth of tickets and bowls prior to the event, and more than 300 bowls were crafted and fired at the college this year. Many Landmark employees and students are an integral part of making this event happen, and several (Marie Breheny, cleanup and recycling; Peter Falion, tickets, table sales and getting all the bowls washed and ready to go; and Ruth Wilmot, student helpers) are key members of the steering committee. We could not do cleanup or table sales without the help of many Landmark employees, including Dotti and Dan Osterholt, Linda Kerr, Sandra Marr, Melissa Wetherby, Tom Kosiba, Chris Arieta, Lena Jahn, Jean Fulton, and Mary Jane Maguire.
The Steering Committee for Empty Bowls starts to meet in May. Key members include Elizabeth Ungerleider (head of publicity, poster creation, and tickets), Micky Moos (box ad and sponsor procurement and table sales czar), Maria Ogden (getting over 125 gallons of delicious soup donated and delivered to Landmark), Linda Whelihan (poster distribution, table sales, lead worker coordinator), Naomi Lindenfield (publicity and bowls donor), Liz McLoughlin (table sales, lead worker at event, sponsor procurement), Bonnie Stearns (acknowledgement of contributors, lead worker, bowls donor), Sharon Snider (window displays), Cherie and David Giddings (decorations and major workers at the event), Shelley Dresser (publicity).
The Brattleboro Food Co-op has served as a key anchor in donating 30-40 gallons of soups and many other supplies each year since we began.
Thanks to Nancy Braus and Everyone's Books for selling tickets for us since the event began and for being a big supporter of the event. Andrea Darrow and Green Mountain Orchards have given us nearly 1,000 apples every year. Vermont Bread Company has also given us bread to serve 1,000 people from the beginning. United Foods has consistently donated our drinks and ice cream, and C& S has done our printing.
Thanks to the many potters, restaurants, and other businesses who donate year after year. Thanks, too, to the many people who turn out to help during the event each year: Karen Boutelle (this year's soup czar at the event), Priscilla Svec, Anna Piergentilli, John Willis, and Pauline Brett, as well as more than 20 students from Brattleboro Union High School, and others.
I extend a huge thanks to all the amazing staff at the Drop-In Center who work so hard on this event: Melinda Bussino, Jamie Vigneau, Chris Chapman, and William Davison (head of parking coordination every year) and his crew - Ed Johnson,Farris Cathey,Tom Carlton,Clifton Johnson, Charlotte Marcy, Paul Mansur, and Paul Kickery, Jr. - who work outside on the night of the event.
It's good to know that as usual our community pulls together to do what we can to help those in less-fortunate straits. Let's keep it going. If you would like to help out with next year's Empty Bowls dinner, please contact me at [email protected].