A heat wave didn’t deter hundreds of Santa Maria Valley residents from devouring assorted gourmet soups Wednesday to benefit the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County.
The 16th annual Santa Maria Empty Bowls, with the theme “Turn Hunger Into Health,” occurred at the Santa Maria Fairpar, where the event’s popularity still meant two separate seatings to accommodate the crowd.
For a $25 ticket donation, Empty Bowls guests chose a colorful handmade bowl, enjoyed a simple meal of soup, bread and water, and took home the bowl as a reminder of the meal’s purpose: to feed the hungry in the Santa Maria Valley.
“Empty Bowls in Santa Maria is really important for two reasons — one it’s financial in terms of it’s a way the community can support the Foodbank and all the major work we do in Santa Maria,” said Foodbank Executive Director Erik Talkin.
“Secondly, it’s a way of just getting people together and saying we as a community stand together to make sure that everyone in Santa Maria has enough to eat,” Talkin said.
Pre-sale ticket purchases for this year’s event doubled last year’s, according to Judith Smith-Meyer, marketing communications manager.
“It’s an amazing turnout today. The fact it’s boiling hot outside and we have air conditioning inside I think helps,” Talkin said. “It is an amazing number of people. This is the most people I think we’ve ever had.
“Things are moving really smoothly, like clockwork here,” he added. “People are having some delicious soup and getting some amazing bowls, and really finding out more about the Foodbank’s mission to both feed and educate people.”
While the calendar says its autumn, temperatures were far from fall-like on Wednesday. Santa Maria’s high temperature of 98 degrees marked the third record-setting day of the week.
Local restaurants and other organizations supplied a variety of soups for attendees.
At one spot, Allan Hancock College Superintendent/President Kevin Walthers served albondigas con pollo prepared by culinary students near tri-tip chili offered by Moxie Cafe.
Olive Garden Restaurant supplied minestrone soup while Shaw’s Steakhouse and Tavern provided Mulligan stew and Rooney’s Irish Pub offered pumpkin butternut soup.
VTC Enterprises offered ham and navy bean soup while Marian Regional Medical Center served roasted bell pepper soup.
“There seems to be a lot of community enthusiasm and support for the Foodbank and to end hunger in the community,” Smith-Meyer added. “Everybody’s really excited so we’re really excited.”
The event also featured a raffle drawing that included a selection of wines, restaurant and entertainment certificates, jewelry, and more.
Santa Maria Empty Bowls is one of two planned in the fall for the Foodbank.
Santa Barbara Empty Bowls — set for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 12 at the Ben Page Youth Center, 4540 Hollister Ave. in Santa Barbara — will mark its 20th year this year.
Tickets, which cost $30 and include options of three seatings, can be purchased online before the event by clicking here.
Lompoc Empty Bowls to benefit the Foodbank occurs in late March.
The Foodbank also is seeking more volunteers, including with the Brown Bag Program for senior citizens in Santa Maria, Talkin said. To find out about volunteering, click here.
Through assorted programs, the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County last year distributed more 9.7 million pounds of food from two warehouse locations — in Santa Barbara and Santa Maria. The organization’s food is used by 1 in 4 people in the community, with fresh produce accounting for half of the food distributed in the county.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.