Ruff'ton Roots Empty Bowls Fundraiser Coming October

Ruff'ton Roots Community Garden is excited to announce their first Empty Bowls event Saturday, October 21 from 5:30-7:30pm at the Rutherfordton Clubhouse, 241 Clubhouse Drive, Rutherfordton. Advanced tickets are on sale now, and highly encouraged as there is limited availability. Tickets can be purchased through the civicrec website with the Town of Rutherfordton. A ticket link is posted on the Ruff'ton Roots Instagram and Facebook accounts.

The Empty Bowls movement was founded by Lisa Blackburn and art teacher John Hartom in 1990 in Michigan. The idea centers around a charitable event to give artists and art students a way to make a personal difference. It has evolved into an international project to fight hunger, that can be tailored to local causes and communities. Ruff'ton Roots not only aligns with the project, but specifically focuses on nutritional justice, increasing access to fresh, local, produce raised with sustainable and organic methods by volunteers.To us, an empty bowl represents promise and potential.

In preparations for the event, Ruff'ton Roots volunteers made bowls in collaboration with the Clay Trail in Spindale, whose resident professional potters also created dozens of bowls for donation. Amanda Maishman with Ceramic Sorcery at the Rutherfordton Visual Arts Council not only hosted an opportunity for 21 community members to make and donate a ceramic bowl for the event, Maishman as an artist, and 9 of her ceramic students each pledged and made a series of bowls. Additional artists supporting the event include Leslie Dinga, Nancy Kubale, and the Porch Potters.

Each ticket to the event includes one of these handmade bowls, an all you can eat soup and salad dinner, featuring decadent recipes from Maples On Main, Main Street Market, Marijane Bowman, and Ruff'ton Roots volunteers. Vegan and vegetarian options will be available, with local farm and garden produce featured in the menu.

Proceeds from the Empty Bowls event will go to the 2024 operational budget for Ruff'ton Roots, which includes seed purchases, organic fertilizer, and special improvement projects and programming. The Ruff'ton Roots' mission is to grow healthy food, healthy people, and healthy communities in Rutherfordton and beyond. Our vision is to ensure and empower a food secure community. So far, in the Community Garden's 2023 growing season, Ruff'ton Roots has increased production and donated over 3,000 pounds of fresh produce to Jericho Soup Kitchen, New Beginnings Soup Kitchen, Rutherford Senior Center, Washburn Community Outreach Center, Red Bird Pantry, and Adaville Food Pantry. For the fall season, sweet potato digging, and the oncoming, kale, cabbage and radishes will continue harvest and distribution through November.

Tickets for the Empty Bowls Fundraiser can be purchased online by visiting the Town's CivicRec Platform at https://secure.rec1.com/NC/rutherfordton-nc- /catalog?filter=c2VhcmNoPTI2MjAyNzQ=.

For additional questions email rufftonroots@gmail.com or contact Magnolia Long, Community Development Director with The Town of Rutherfordton.