STLCC students and faculty raise awareness of hunger worldwide.
By: Joe Makoto
-Staff Writer-
The Empty Bowls Luncheon was held at STLCC-Meramec on Nov. 7 to benefit Operation Food Search, a local food bank. Attendees who made a $10 donation received a lunch and chose a ceramic bowl created by Meramec ceramic students.
“An effort like this really impacts our ability to reach out and help people,” said Karen Klaus of Operation Food Search. Over $1600 and canned goods were donated at the event.
“[Hunger] is very real and people don’t really recognize it is going on,” said Meredith Boyer, a ceramics student who has participated in the past three Empty Bowls Luncheons.
“It’s a good cause, a real good cause,” Ahmed Habib said, another ceramics student who is a first time participant. He said he heard his ceramics class professor Jim Ibur speak about it and thought, “Sure, go help.”
“I wish for students to participate in healing the world. obviously, the relationship of pottery to the table and food made it natural,” Meramec professor Jim Ibur said.
The well attended event occurred just as pressure on people’s food budget is ratcheting up, “They’re predicting about a 4 percent food price increases next year due to the effects of the drought, it really hits people hard, especially the most vulnerable citizens. About a third of those we serve are children,” Klaus said.
Professor Ibur’s larger goal is, “to wake up people in the Meramec college community to this reality. it’s also to give a connection to students in ceramics to see the power of making something and being able to give it away and have a real impact socially.”
“We have had a tremendous amount of people, and everyone is happy and smiling and generous. I think it’s an exceptional event because it shows the overwhelming generosity of the students and faculty at Meramec,” Klaus said.
