Filling bowls and stomachs at special event in Waterloo

A special event helped raise thousands for people in need. CTV’s Spencer Turcotte explains how it helped fill a growing gap.

The Empty Bowls event returned to Wilfrid Laurier University on Wednesday.

Its goal is to make it easier to fill plates and stomachs for those who are food insecure in Waterloo Region.

Money raised from the event goes to the Food Bank of Waterloo Region, which then gets passed on to people who need it.

More than 600 attendees paid $50, which gets them a gourmet soup or meal prepared by local chefs. It is then eaten from a handcrafted bowl, which attendees get to keep, made by artisans from the Waterloo Potters’ Workshop.

“I teach here, but secondly, we used to come to this quite often,” attendee Keith Masterman said. “It’s such an amazing event and it’s for such a great cause. Those three reasons are kind of like hitting home runs there.”

Angela Trimarchi was another attendee of the 27th annual Empty Bowls event, who said she was thrilled to be a part of it.

“It sounded like an interesting event, and I like to support a local cause,” said Trimarchi.

Since 1998, Empty Bowls has provided over 1.5 million meals for people in need. For every ticket sold this year, The Food Bank of Waterloo Region can provide 100 healthy meals.

“I think mostly what we’d like to do is raise people’s awareness around things like food insecurity,” said Scott Gillies, who helped host the event on behalf of WLU.

The event far surpassed its $25,000 fundraising goal and hit nearly $30,000.

“The statistics show that 1 in 8 households in Waterloo Region experience food scarcity,” Rebecca Hempey, The Food Bank of Waterloo Region COO, said. “We’ve seen in the past year a 25 per cent increase in that need,”

So seeing a sold out crowd gives organizers and the food bank a full feeling in a different way.

“Food scarcity is something that needs to be continually brought forth in the community,” said Hempey. “These types of events show us that this community cares. It’s incredible.”