04.06.2009
SIXTH EMPTY BOWLS EVENT TO BE HELD TUESDAY
Marshall students and Huntington Area Food Bank are ready
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — The countdown to the sixth annual Empty Bowls event is coming to a close as Marshall University (MU) students and the Huntington Area Food Bank (HAFB) continue to collect donations and handcraft bowls in preparation for the event.
Students from the Department of Art and Design in the College of Fine Arts’ Keramos Student Pottery Guild continue to work toward reaching their goal of handcrafting 1,000 ceramic bowls, and public relations students in the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism and Mass Communications’ have been preparing for the event for months now. The students are confident that they will reach their goal of raising money for the HAFB as well as raising awareness about hunger in the Tri-State area.
“We are getting to the end and everything is starting to fall into place,” said Meagan Sellards, Empty Bowls campaign director. “Everyone has worked together in order to ensure that this is a successful event.”
The event is Tuesday from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church, 1015 Fifth Ave., Huntington, W.Va. For a $12 donation, guests will receive a handcrafted ceramic bowl of their choice and a lunch of soup, bread and Pepsi. Proceeds benefit the HAFB.
“We have to make sure that every small detail is in order before the day of the event to make sure it runs smoothly,” said Adam Russell, public relations student and Empty Bowls campaign representative. “Everyone involved has a common goal of raising money for the food bank. We want to make sure that guests can come out and have a good time, and also understand that there are some people in the community who go hungry every day. Their donation is going toward helping one of those people.”
A silent auction will be held at the event. Participants can bid on additional bowls signed by Governor Joe Manchin, Marshall University President Stephen Kopp and Coach Mark Snyder; Marshall memorabilia including an authentic cheerleading uniform and items signed by Chad Pennington, Bobby Pruett, Red Dawson, Randy Moss, and Marshall athletic teams; gift cards from Sculptures Salon, Wal-Mart and local area restaurants; memorabilia signed by famous musicians and athletes; a gift package from Pullman Plaza and two end zone tickets for the 2009 Marshall football season donated by the Marshall Athletics Department are just a few of the gifts that are being offered.
Additional artwork to be auctioned off has been donated by three local high schools. Art teachers Lois Mack from Cabell Midland, Phoebe Carry from Fairland and Karen Alexander from Spring Valley all have students who are contributing something to the auction.
”We are very happy to have several area high schools participating in Empty Bowls,” said Earline Allen, ceramics professor. “These students are learning how to make a positive impact on their communities.”
“None of this would be possible without the help of local businesses and members of the community,” said Will Selbee, public relations student and Empty Bowls campaign representative. “Local restaurants have been very generous with donating soup and businesses are eager to help by donating items for the silent auction. We have a total of 124 gallons of soup and many great gifts for the auction.”
Guests going through the soup line will also get the chance to meet local celebrities who are volunteering at the event. Celebrity servers include WOWK’s Sandra Cole, WSAZ’s Paul Gessler, Magic 97.9’s J.B. Miller, former Marshall Student Body President Matt James and current Student Body President Sean Hornbuckle, The Herald Dispatch’s Dave Lavender, Miss West Virginia International Misty McMinn and Marshall mascot Marco, along with others who will be volunteering throughout the day.
For more information about the HAFB, call Brooke Ash at (304) 523-6029 or e-mail hafbmail@hafb.org. For more information about the Empty Bowls event, call Campaign Director Meagan Sellards at (304) 412-5900 or e-mail emptybowls@marshall.edu. Erica Rife, the media representative, can be reached at (304) 360-3394, e-mail emptybowls@marshall.edu or visit www.marshall.edu/SOJMC.
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The Huntington Area Food Bank, Inc., is a private, nonprofit, charitable organization affiliated with Feeding America, the largest hunger relief agency in the United States. The HAFB is the hub in a network of food donors and more than 290 agencies that serve hungry people in West Virginia, eastern Kentucky and southeastern Ohio. The HAFB assists food pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters, senior citizens programs, youth programs and residential programs that directly serve the needs of the hungry. The HAFB member agencies are located in 17 counties throughout the Tri-State area. All member agencies served by the HAFB are private and nonprofit. For more information, please visit www.hafb.org.