Lately, I have been struggling with the direction I’d like to take my business.  If What’s Cooking were a non-profit organization, I might be able to get grants that would allow me to teach cooking classes to the under-served youth in our community.  Yet, I don’t want to spend all of my time writing grants and fundraising.  I’d rather be with my students, playing with food, or writing lesson plans to get kids excited about eating healthy & sustainable food.  Perhaps I should continue doing what I have always done…weave Service into my existing program.  Maybe I’ll get lucky and find a corporate or fiscal sponsor who will fund what I do best: teaching kids and their families about eating well and using food as a vehicle to help others.

It was in the midst of these business-related contemplations when my friend Kebby, from Studio4Art , approached me about collaborating on a child-centered fundraiser.  Needless to say, I jumped at the chance.  After one meeting and several enthusiastic phone calls and emails, our event, Soup – The Bowl that Keeps Feeding, was born.

Studio4Art is currently working with kids to throw and glaze soup bowls, and children from local schools are working with me to prepare home-made soup.  At the event, itself, guests get to select any bowl of their choice, and we will fill it with soup and enjoy a meal together.  Guests get to bring their empty bowls home as a reminder of the hungry children in our community and that they personally did something to make a difference.  All proceeds from the event will be donated to Homeward Bound of Marin’s Emergency Family Shelter.  If you would like to purchase a (very affordable) ticket to the event, please visit our page at Brown Paper Tickets.  If you want to support our efforts but are unable to attend, please donate by using the FirstGiviving link below.