Cincinnati, Ohio, October
25, 2013 – St. Ursula Academy
students are staying true to the school’s mission to educate young women committed to building a better world with their latest project, which raised
money to help feed the hungry population of Covington, Kentucky.
On Sunday, October 6th, St. Ursula hosted its third annual “Empty Bowls” event as a service learning project for its students. The goal was to raise money to help feed the hungry and food insecure population of Covington. Guests from the community were invited to attend the event and in exchange for a cash donation, bowls created by the ceramics students were filled with homemade soup donated by faculty, staff, and parents. Guests were asked to keep their handmade ceramic bowls as a reminder of all the empty bowls in the world.
Over 200 people attended Empty Bowls and the event raised $3,775, which was donated by the SUA students to the Parish Kitchen in Covington, Kentucky. This money will pay for 880 meals and cover the cost of all the food needed to serve meals for four full days. The event was a joint project coordinated by St. Ursula Art Teacher Kurt Nicaise and Community Service Learning Director Rachel Kemper, who coordinated a “Shantytown” Event on campus during the same weekend.
“With donations down and the cost of food rising, a gift like this really helps us incredibly!” said Dan Nolan from the Parish Kitchen when presented with the check.
“We are very grateful and hope the students realize what a significant impact they can make when they work together. They are really making a difference.”
"It was nice to see how the Saint Ursula community came together to support the people who can benefit from our help, especially when our help was so simple!" said senior Kate Richey of Indian Hill.
The benefits were two-fold for Carolyn Markley of Maineville, who created a bowl, attended the event, and was present for the check presentation. She saw first-hand the benefits of creating a piece of artwork and then using that artwork to help others.
“During the project, my skills as a potter and ceramicist were drastically improved.” said Markley. “After making numerous bowls, your hands become much more adept and your confidence as an artist increases greatly. Additionally, during the project, I learned just how many organizations are a part of the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky network helping to provide relief for the homeless population. It was a great experience to be able to offer aid to people in need by donating my time and effort.”
Empty Bowls is an international grassroots effort to fight hunger. The money raised is always donated to an organization working to end hunger and food insecurity. To learn more about St. Ursula Academy, please visit www.saintursula.org.
St. Ursula Academy is a Catholic, college-preparatory, secondary school for young women known for academic excellence and rich tradition. St. Ursula welcomes students from more than 70 grade schools in the Greater Cincinnati area. In 2002 the Academy was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a Blue Ribbon School. The campus, located at 1339 E. McMillan Street in East Walnut Hills has been the home of St. Ursula Academy and Convent since 1910. 87% of the class of 2013 earned college scholarships totaling more than $20-million.