Left to right: Lori Shelton, Heidi Thiele, Pat Bender, and Lois Plato present info on Empty Bowls. (Photo by Dianne Dugan)
Patricia Bender, the education chair of the Happy Potters, hosts and facilitates many pottery workshops and demonstrations throughout the year. Although she is always excited to share “all things pottery” with the group, she is never more excited than when she gets to combine two of her passions: pottery and her favorite local charity, Empty Bowls of Denton, into a fun and worthwhile workshop making—you guessed it—bowls for charity!
The workshop began with a brief presentation by representatives from Empty Bowls Lois Plato, Lori Shelton, and Heidi Thiele who talked about the charity, its impact on the Denton community, and how the fundraiser works.
Attendees of the Empty Bowls luncheon enjoy a meal of soup and bread made by local restaurants and get to choose and take home an artisan bowl from a selection of over 400 unique pottery and wooden bowls donated by local artists.
For the past few years, the Empty Bowls workshop, held in the Pottery Studio located in the Wine Cup Room of the CATC, has been a major charitable project for the Happy Potters. Last year alone, our group handcrafted and donated 150 bowls to the fundraising event, which benefits the Denton Community Food Center and Our Daily Bread Community Kitchen. This year we were very pleased that the Kiln Krafters (with whom we share the studio) joined the workshop to help us achieve our goal to again donate 150 bowls.
Following the well-attended workshop, Pat shared this sentiment: “It was great that you were all able to meet the dedicated ladies from Empty Bowls and to hear firsthand how much each bowl that our studio provides helps fight hunger! This is a club benefit, and each of you makes it a success for giving back to our community!”
Thank you, Pat, for bringing to us this opportunity to make a difference!
This year’s Empty Bowls Fundraising Luncheon will be held on Oct. 12, from noon until 2 p.m., at Harvest House in Denton. Tickets are only $30. Go to ctsdenton.org\ministries\empty-bowls for information.