2026 Empty Bowls Tickets Are No Longer Available

Thank you to everyone who has purchased a ticket for this year's Empty Bowls Fundraiser Event. We are looking forward to seeing you October 9th!

Empty Bowls

A Fundraiser to Fight Hunger • October 9th, 2026 • Parker-Binns Vineyard

Explore the Event

PRESENTED BY:

What is Empty Bowls?

Empty Bowls began in 1990 as an art class project in a Michigan high school to raise money for a food drive. Students made ceramic bowls, served a simple meal of soup and bread and asked guests to keep the bowl as a reminder of all the empty bowls at mealtime around the world. Soon this simple idea morphed into an international project to raise money and awareness for the fight against hunger. While everyone puts their own spin on different Empty Bowls events across the globe, a few things must be consistent -

a simple meal of soup and bread must be served
a handcrafted bowl must be offered to all guests to serve as a reminder of all the empty bowls at mealtime
guests make a donation in exchange for the meal and handcrafted bowl
all funds raised under the Empty Bowls name, must be used to fight hunger

Here in Polk County

Outreach hosts our Empty Bowls Fundraiser typically in the fall of the year. We partner with Tryon Arts and Crafts School, their Executive Director, Will Barclift and many local, talented professional potters. These artists coordinate with other area potters to organize the efforts to create, glaze and fire hundreds of handcrafted bowls that will be given to each Empty Bowls guest.

Thank you to all who were involved in making the handcrafted bowls for Empty Bowls 2026:

The Professional Potters:

Ann Gleason
Chloe Compton
Cindy McKinstrie
Dee Lassiter
Jim Cullen
Meghan Bernard
Roe Sprouls
Sam Oliver
Susan McDade
Vienna Paulsen

The TACS Glazers:

Barbara Sholl
Debbie Thompson
Red DuMonde
Tari Gerst

2026 Partnering Restaurants

Thank you to all our 2026 Partnering Restaurants for donating soup & to Martha's Amish Bakery for donating all the bread for this event.

Bread By:

Martha's Amish Bakery

Partnering Restaurants:

Green River House
Huckleberry's
Sagrada
Saluda Outfitters and Green River Eddy's Tap Room & Grill
Southside Smokehouse & Grille
The Iron Key Brewing Company
Tryon International

Held at Parker-Binns Vineyard since 2016, guests sample soups from 7 local restaurants, enjoy artisan breads from Martha's Amish Bakery and live music on the porch from Rudy Cortese and Elizabeth Kronlage. Parker-Binns will offer their wines and beer for sale. Our Empty Bowls event is a wonderful, collaborative, community effort that would not be possible without Tryon Arts and Crafts School and local professional artists, volunteers, restaurant and business sponsors.