Notre Dame Academy, an independent Catholic school in Duluth, held its first “Empty Bowls Dinner” on Sunday, Feb. 24, raising more than $1,000 to help the Duluth Co-Op.

Empty Bowls, a worldwide service learning project that incorporates the creation of art to fight the hunger crisis in America, boasts a simple but profound concept, as depicted by Notre Dame Academy.

The Marist-sponsored school hosted a simple meal of soup and bread for students and families of the school. Proceeds from the dinner were then donated to support the pantry needs of the Duluth Co-Op.

In art classes, students throughout Notre Dame Academy’s elementary and middle school discussed the problem of hunger in America and worked to create ceramic bowls to be presented as gifts.

All who came to the dinner were invited to take home a ceramic bowl made by the students, as a reminder of those who have empty bowls.

On the night of the school’s first Empty Bowls dinner, students discovered their own meaning of “empty bowls.” The event garnered such a crowd that they ran out of soup. Some of the fourth-grade students who worked so hard on the event left with just bread, but that didn’t affect their spirits. They were eager to take on this project and were excited about raising $1,084 to help the Duluth Co-Op.