Annual luncheon raises funds for Foothills Food Bank

MARC BUCKHOUT ~ MANAGING EDITOR~ 10/12/2011

The meals admittedly won’t be big, but the message and the value of the event is huge according to organizers of the 11th annual Foothills Empty Bowls luncheon, an event set for 11 a.m., Oct. 21 in the Carefree Town Center.
The event, which benefits the Foothills Food Bank and Resource Center in Cave Creek, is the largest fundraiser of the year for the local food bank which provided food and other grocery items for 310 families or just under 1,000 people in September alone.
“We broke records last year for the number of people we were able to help,” Pam DiPietro, the executive director of the Foothills Food Bank said. “We’re proud of that, but as a result we are at an all-time low when it comes to food. This is my 10th year here at the food bank and I’ve never seen our shelves with so little food.”
The Foothills Food Bank serves 180 square miles, north to Yavapai County, west to I-17, east to Rio Verde and south as far as Jomax Road.
The event, which raised $22,042 last year, leans on the local art community for its success.
Carole Perry, who co-chairs the event, is one of those artists. Perry, who runs her own business called Laughing Glass Studio, helped bring the event to the local community after spending some time participating in Phoenix’s version of the Empty Bowls event.
She said somewhere in the vicinity of 35 to 45 artists, including 15 to 20 that belong to the Sonoran Arts League, donate bowls for the luncheon. Paradise Valley Community College also make a big donation each other.
“I try to make sure that our studio donates 500 bowls each year,” Perry said. “We don’t have as many artists up here as we did at one time. With the economy being what it is, some have had to go into other lines of work, but we’ll have plenty of bowls to choose from.”
Those attending the event will show up at 11 a.m. and be able to view tables upon tables of bowls.
For a minimum donation of $15 attendees will be able to select a bowl they want, have it cleaned out and then be served a pasta lunch, courtesy of Carefree Resort, which donates the lunch.
“They’ve been so gracious to participate,” Perry said. “They do two different kinds of pasta, both a meat and vegetarian and then the chef makes magnificent garlic bred. People always ask for more, but while this is supposed to be an enjoyable event, it’s also supposed to be an educational one. The amount of food that will be served is how much a homeless person would get if they went to a shelter.”
While the minimum recommended donation for a bowl is $15, Perry said that some attendees will write checks for as much as $500. She also said that even if a person is unable to make a $15 donation nobody will be turned away.
In addition to the bowls other artists have offered up items for the event’s silent auction.
“Over the years we’ve evolved,” DiPietro said. “The silent auction has been very successful because the artists have been very generous. Last year we had 50 items up for bid. A minimum bid is set on each item and the value on the things ranged anywhere from $25 - $2,500. It pretty much runs the gamut from ceramics to jewelry, to oil or water color paintings. Really anything you might be looking for.”
At the end of the day Perry said the goal for this year’s event is raising $25,000.
“The good word just continues to spread,” she said. “Last year Costco supplied the water and the city of Carefree provides the venue free of charge. We get a lot of great support and hope this event continues to get bigger and bigger. And the great thing is at the end of the day all of the proceeds go to the food bank.”
Since 2002 the event has raised $161,535.
For information about the event call 480-575-6624 or go to  foothillsfoodbank.com.