TC Project to Help Feed Hungry

This article, written by David Stone, appears in the Dec. 11, 2024 edition of Our Town.

A project launched by the Temple College Visual Arts Department will help Feed My Sheep deliver meals to veterans and those experiencing homelessness at camps throughout Temple.

“The Empty Bowl Project is a grassroots initiative started in the 1990s,” said Deric Ence, chair of the Visual Arts Department at Temple College. “I was involved in Empty Bowl as a student, but when I took my position at the College, I decided there was a need here in Temple.”

“I pitched my idea to Jeff Stegall at Feed My Sheep, and art students and myself started making bowls,” he said.

The bowls — more than 100 have been made — are mostly ceramic although some are made from other mediums. They were crafted in a variety of shapes and sizes, and decorated into one-of-a-kind items.

The TC art department is donating the bowls to Feed My Sheep and will be used in a Dec. 21 fundraiser at Temple Bible Church.

Starting at 5 p.m., community members may purchase the bowl of their choice filled with chili or soup and served with a drink, cornbread and a small dessert snack for $25.

“Feed My Sheep will make the chili and cornbread, and Rose Jo’s will donate soups to be served,” Ence said. “This is a great way for people to come out and support the community and Feed My Sheep.”

Stegall, executive director of Feed My. Sheep, said he was approached by Ence about the project and immediately fell in love with the idea. The men hope Empty Bowl can become an annual event.

“Money raised by Empty Bowl will help us buy a used vehicle for our mobile food program,” Stegall said. “Right now, we are using an old, used Suburban to deliver meals to unhoused veterans and others living in camps around town. Most of these camps are too far from Feed My Sheep for the people to walk, so we deliver every day of the week.”

More than 460 meals are delivered by the mobile team every week, Stegall said.

“The funding is important, but so is community involvement,” he said. “Temple College saw a need and approached us with it. It’s a great project.”

“Those who made the bowls and those who attend the fundraiser are making a huge community impact,” Stegall added. “These bowls are beautiful works of art.”