JOIN US IN ENDING FOOD INSECURITY IN OUR COMMUNITY

Here is a copy of what we call our 'ask' letter written by Michael Terra. If you or your business or some wonderful philanthropist that you know would like to donate to our worthy cause then please reach out to us! 

Dear.....,

I am writing to you on behalf of the Empty Bowls Project of Paducah with an “ask”…and, just to be completely transparent with you, this is really the most uncomfortable thing that I have to do every year.

I hope that you’ve already heard of the project (we have been doing this every year since 2010) and that it appeals to you on many levels…but, if we don’t make that assumption, let me tell you what we’re doing here in Paducah.

The Empty Bowls Project raises funds to help the Community Kitchen serve our neighbors excellent hotmeals every weekday--anywhere from 400-800 per day. During the lock-down phase of the pandemic they were boxing as many as 1200 meals every day…. Food insecurity in our community is a pervasive thing and touches a huge number of families in Paducah.

We do this fundraising in a unique way: We have local artists and community members actually make bowls, and then, we partner with local eateries to fill those bowls at the one-day event that we hold in August (August 26th this year). 

The whole thing is staffed by volunteers. The restaurants donate their talent, staff and products. Together we bring 1400-1800 bowls to the table at the convention center and fill them in one afternoon.

We enjoy the lavish support of the media community with radio, television and print outlets giving us a lot of visibility that we really appreciate.

There is another effect of this work…conversation. We help start those conversations about giving and need and the hidden and unseen challenges that many families struggle with. We remind people that there is enough to share and that it is so easy and gracious to do that simple thing.

But…a lot goes into an event--especially an event like this that has so many moving parts! We have the cost of clay and glaze and electricity for the firing of the kilns, we have printing costs, and, most dramatically, we have the cost of the venue that we use: the Julian Carroll Convention Center. We are asking for your help in defraying these production costs so that we can put the maximum amount of money “on the table” in the form of meals for our most vulnerable neighbors in Paducah.

 Your support of the Empty Bowls project won’t go unnoticed! We will include you visibly in all of the ways we can, including the giant “thanks” banners at the event.

There. I’ve done the letter. We hope that you’ll let us know that you want to do this too.

Blessings abound,

Michael Terra

Important Notes:

-Your donations are completely tax deductible; we are a 501(c)3 organization. (A project of GPSP).

-Payments can be mailed to The Empty Bowls project at 514 N 7th Street, Paducah, KY 42001.

-For more information about everything Empty Bowls, please go to our website at

EmptyBowlsPaducah.com