KINGWOOD — On Saturday, Food For Preston will host the 13th annual Empty Bowls dinner for Preston County .
This year’s dinner will be 4-7 p.m. at the Kingwood Community Building at 115 Brown Ave. The cost is $15. Children under 10 will eat for free but will not receive a free bowl. All proceeds will benefit Food For Preston, which works with county food pantries.
Food for Preston (FFP) Coordinator Tammy Laney FFP said a lot goes into preparing for the dinner. FFP Treasurer Karen Bright said bowls for the event are hand painted year round by volunteers, church groups, members of the 4-H, Preston County school groups and businesses. Many of the bowls come from Incredible Creations in Kingwood.
“Once the bowls are painted, they have to be dipped into food safe glaze,” Bright said. After the glaze dries the bowls have to be fired in the kiln for four hours at 1,800 degrees. It takes the kiln 20 hours to cool down so the bowls can be retrieved.
Then they are ready for diners to fill with soup at Empty Bowls before taking them home to keep. Plates and mugs also will be available to choose from.
“Even though the bowls are dishwasher safe and microwave safe it is better to hand wash them and not microwave them for a long period of time,” Bright said.
The all-you-can eat meal will include soups, bread, cookies and drinks. Take outs will be available.
Laney said this year’s soups, donated by local businesses, churches and individuals, will include stuffed pepper soup from Monroe’s restaurant; lentil soup from The Preston County Inn; potato with chicken soup from Rosemary’s Thyme; Hungarian goulash from Kitchen Crafts Catering; ham and bean soup made by Jim Crandall; cheesy enchilada soup from the CEOS; vegetarian broccoli cheddar from Little Sandy Church; and vegetarian tomato basil made by Brenda Smith.
Laney said in addition to the food, there will be raffles. Items will include baby quilts, toys, books and gift certificates. She said silent auction wildlife art items will also be displayed for bidding. Local folk singer Paul Burger will provide music.
Laney said Empty Bowls would not be possible without the support of key sponsors and volunteers who help organize, set up, serve and clean up each year.
These include the Kingwood Baptist Church, the WV Public Health Commissioned Corps and contact Alyson Johnson, the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health in Morgantown, and the Aurora School eighth grade students and their school counselor, Maureen Durst.
