Students dish up unique way to help end hunger in The Woodlands

THE WOODLANDS, Texas -- The John Cooper School National Art Honor Society (NAHS) and Cooper Art Society (CAS) students invite members of the community to join them in their effort to assist hunger relief efforts at the 12th Annual Empty Bowls Project, 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25.

Handmade bowls, created by Cooper students in grades Pre-K through Grade 12, as well as faculty, staff, parents and local artists, will be displayed for attendees to select a bowl to take home and a silent auction of bowl-related art will add to the fundraising efforts.

"The handmade bowls come in all shapes, sizes and forms and are for people to take home as a reminder of the fight against hunger," said senior Gina Valderrama, who is the NAHS Service Chair.

Faculty advisors Jamila Musa and Emily Taylor are continuing to add new dimensions to the bowls they made for the event. "We are taking bowl making in new directions: from 3-D printed bowls, ceramic cups, and more traditional bowls to watercolor paintings and photographs of bowls at various states of emptiness," Taylor said. "With such diversity, visitors will be sure to leave with a unique work of art, whether from entry donation and/or the silent auction."

A simple meal of soup and water will be served for the admission price and all proceeds will go to the Interfaith Food Pantry.

The 2017 Empty Bowls event will be held in Cooper's Student Center. Online reservations are encouraged, but not required. The public is invited to this annual event that has helped to raise over $75,000 for hunger relief in our community over the past 11 years. Reservations are $10 and are sold online.

“John Cooper students enrich their lives and the lives of others in need through a deep voluntary commitment to a number of outreach activities,” said Visual Arts Department Chair Bob Mosier. “Empty Bowls is an annual project that is entirely student-led and involves the participation of the entire Cooper community. We are very proud of the commitment of our students to make this an annual event.”

More information and a link to the online reservation is posted on the homepage of the Cooper website at www.johncooper.org.