SHOW LOW — One in four households in Navajo County and one in three households in Apache County are considered food insecure. Feeding America estimates over 46,500 people in these two counties fall below the 185 percent poverty level for SNAP and other nutrition program eligibility. Northland Pioneer College’s Fine Arts Department is hosting two “Make-a-Thons” from 12 noon to 4 p.m. on Fridays, Sept. 7 and Sept. 21, at the NPC Show Low campus, in the Aspen Center, Room 104, to handcraft bowls to be used for the fourth annual Empty Bowls Community Event that will be held on Nov. 16. Enter the campus from West Whipple Street. The Aspen Center is the building closest to Whipple. “No experience is necessary and all ages are welcome to help create bowls for the event,” said Magda Gluszek, a well-known ceramicist and NPC art faculty. Groups of four or more should contact Gluszek at least 24 hours in advance to schedule a making time. “Empty Bowls is an international nonprofit grassroots effort by ceramicists and educators, working with the community, to create handcrafted bowls as a way to raise awareness of food insecurity in our communities,” Gluszek explained. “The bowls created during our ‘Make-a-Thons’ will be used to serve a simple meal of soup and bread during our third annual Empty Bowls Community Event. A cup of soup and a slice of bread; that’s the daily meal for many in our communities facing food insecurity.” For a donation of $10 at the Empty Bowls Community Event, you’ll receive one of the handcrafted bowls filled with soup from Persnikkity’s in Show Low and portion of bread from Karen’s Country Bake Shop in Pinetop. All proceeds from the Empty Bowls Community Event go to The Love Kitchen in Pinetop to aid in the fight against hunger. The event has raised over $5,000 for the Love Kitchen. Food insecurity is defined as lack of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members and limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate foods. Food insecure households are not necessarily food insecure all the time. Food insecurity may reflect a household’s need to make trade-offs between important basic needs, such as housing or medical bills, and purchasing nutritionally adequate foods. For more information about the Empty Bowls project, contact Magda Gluszek at 532-6176.
