Throughout the month of March, Patricia Clancy’s Ceramic classes have been busy crafting bowls for the annual Empty Bowls event. Dawned as an “inter­na­tion­al grass­roots effort” on their website, the event is aimed towards increasing community awareness and fighting against hunger.

Clancy’s classes first became involved with the program in 2016 and have adopted the cause as  part of their Lead to Feed initiative. In previous years, the classes  contributed an average of 110 bowls.  However, this year,  the students have managed to craft  115.

“The kids have done a great job this year, and we’re getting better!  Like this one (she holds up a white unpainted bowl) the glaze that is going to go on it [the bowl], is really what’s going to make or break it,” said Clancy. “So the kids are glazing, and they are making, and I love it.”

Working like an evening gala, all profits benefit the Peninsula Food-Bank. Attendees of the event start the night by picking a hand­craft­ed bowls as a memen­to of the event, and a reminder of the emp­ty bowls they are help­ing to fill. Additional bowls are also available for auction from various renowned artists. The event is catered by a number of well known restaurant chains in the Hampton Roads area such as: Circa 1918, Schlesinger’s, Riverwalk Restaurant, The Point, Park Lane Tavern, LaBodega, Venture, Huntington House, and Thank Goodness It’s Homemade.

“All of my classes, every single kid, was asked to donate a bowl,” Clancy mentioned.

Menchvilles’ bowl’s are slotted to be picked up from the school on Friday, March 17th in time for the event which will be held on March 24th from 5:30-9:00pm at the Old Hamp­ton Post Office on 132 East Queen Street, Hamp­ton VA.

Gallery • 6 Photos

Kylee Baines

Ceramic student DJ Phillips painting his finished bowl with a red orange glaze.