Empty Bowls & Harvest of Hope at Watershed
Watershed’s inaugural Empty Bowls fundraiser brought the Boulder community together to address food insecurity in our area. Benefiting the Harvest of Hope Food Pantry, a longstanding partner of Watershed, attendees purchased tickets that included a handcrafted ceramic bowl - symbolizing the empty bowls of those in need.
Students in Watershed’s Ceramics courses, along with members of the Boulder Potters’ Guild (another Watershed community partner) contributed handmade bowls and volunteered their time for the event. A representative from the Harvest of Hope Food Pantry also took the time to speak about their mission and goals as an organization: to provide healthy, supplemental food for folks in Boulder who need it most. Local Boulder restaurants Bellota, Brasserie Ten Ten, and Lucky’s Market generously provided the meal - soup and bread for attendees to share together in community.
The event made a remarkable impact: 133 tickets sold, over 155 bowls distributed, and more than $4,700 raised for Harvest of Hope! This experience reminded us that small actions, united by community, can drive meaningful change.
“Our partnership with the Boulder Potters’ Guild was crucial in order to have a successful first run for this fundraiser. The Watershed students worked hard to make bowls, but lacked the time and resources to generate a volume of bowls an event like this requires. The membership of the Guild really stepped up with donating bowls and facilitating a Bowl-a-Thon to create a wonderful selection of bowls for attendees to choose from.”
UPDATE 2025 - Watershed’s 2nd Annual Empty Bowls Fundraiser: Another Success!
Energized by last year’s success, Watershed held its second annual Boulder Empty Bowls Fundraiser at our new campus this year on February 20, 2025. We were thrilled by the turnout, selling even more tickets than our previous year! Local restaurants that generously donated soup and bread this year were: Lucky’s Bakehouse/Cafe, Dish Gourmet, and the West End Tavern.
The success of this year’s event was truly inspiring, with a total of $7,093 raised! Of this amount, $3,750 came from ticket sales, and the remaining $3,343 was from donations (including a last-minute gift of $1,000!) and the sale of the handcrafted bowls. Thanks to the generosity of attendees and local businesses, the funds raised will provide over 7,500 meals for those in need.
We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who participated, volunteered, and donated. This event was a shining example of what can be accomplished when a community comes together to support those in need, one bowl at a time.
To learn about what is going on at Harvest of Hope Pantry or for information about getting involved, you can check out their website or newsletter! Empty Bowls is a national effort to address local food insecurity. You can learn more here!
