Turnagain Ceramics hosts Throw-a-thon for the Empty Bowl Project

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - A pottery studio is turning out handcrafted works of art, all for a good cause.

Turnagain Ceramics hosted its Throw-a-Thon event Saturday, where students and members created hundreds of bowls for the Empty Bowl Project.

“We’re super excited to be able to provide as many bowls as we possibly can to the Empty Bowl Project,” Turnagain Ceramics co-owner Evan Fried said. “Those bowls will be available for purchase around town, the proceeds of those purchases directly are donated to Beans and benefit their cause and their constituents.”

The Empty Bowl Project is a fundraising event where people can purchase pottery bowls, with the proceeds going to Bean’s Cafe, one of Anchorage’s top organizations that provides meals for people that are going hungry.

“We have seen the demand for food grow exponentially, both in our children’s lunchbox program and feeding the homeless population as well,” Beans Cafe CEO Lisa Sauder said. “And so to be able to bring back this event and help us raise much-needed funds to make sure that nobody goes hungry is super important.”

This year, the Empty Bowl Project varied from previous years with seven restaurants making soups with a donation for each cup or bowl sold for the project through the month of March, alongside a VIP event with limited capacity at the 49th State Brewing Company.

“It’s a really great way for our community here at Turnagain Ceramics to kind of come together and have fun, we all love making pottery, but what’s even better than that is that we’re doing it to support such an amazing cause,” Fried said.

For those interested in attending the Empty Bowl Project, event information and tickets can be found on the Bean’s Cafe website.

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