To the Editor:

We would like to thank the many people in our community who helped make our first “Soul-filled Bowls Project” — a locally created and implemented project raising funds to feed the hungry in our community — such an extraordinary success. $4,000 was raised and donated to Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK) and Mercer Street Friends, two local organizations working to feed the hungry (“food insecure”) in Mercer County.

Local artists donated handmade ceramic bowls that were sold at the Arts Council of Princeton (ACP) on December 3 for $20 each. Blawenburg Inn donated chef-prepared soups that were served to visitors in their new bowls, and Brick Farms and Halo Farms donated delicious freshly baked breads to go with the soups. Visitors browsed the ceramic bowls displayed in the Taplin Gallery and enjoyed delicious kale or lentil soups in the Solly Theater and the Community Room. In a few hours, more than 200 gorgeous bowls were sold, countless bowls of fabulous kale and lentil soups and fresh rolls and loaves were eaten.

We’d like to thank all the bowl-makers for donating their beautiful creations for sale, with a special “shout out” to the Arts Councils students who worked so tirelessly and collaboratively, the Princeton Day School students who donated two huge bins filled with gorgeous handmade ceramic bowls, and the PDS teachers who enthusiastically embraced the project and integrated it into their curricula.

We’d also like to thank the local businesses who generously donated their wonderful foods to this event.

A big “thank you” also goes to the ACP staff, teachers, and students who helped set up the gallery and the soup tables, served the soups, and cleaned up the building at the end of the day.

We are especially grateful to the Arts Council of Princeton for sharing its facilities and support, for the representative from Mercer Street Friends who discussed food insecurity in Mercer County, and for the many members of our community who came out to share the spirit of this event.

Soul-filled Bowls Project Committee

Ceramics Studio, Arts Council of Princeton