Soup’s On! – Samaritan Center’s 27th Annual Soup Bowl Event
(Vero Beach, FL) September 16, 2019 – The 27th Annual Samaritan Center Soup Bowl will be held county wide on Thursday, November 7, 2019. More than 70 local restaurants supply the soup which will be served at the local places of worship and each business location provides their own soup. Lunch will be served from 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. and dinner locations will serve from 4:30 - 7:00 p.m.
The Samaritan Center provides transitional housing for homeless families with dependent children in Indian River County. Samaritan Center is a core program of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Palm Beach and a funded partner of the United Way. This event raises awareness and funds for the homeless families served by Samaritan Center.
“The Soup Bowl has turned into a county ritual,” said Renee Bireley, Program Administrator. “Soup Bowl originated more than 26 years ago when the Samaritan Center Advisory Board brainstormed ideas on a community fundraiser that would bring awareness to the homeless population and would be affordable enough for everyone to attend. From that meeting, Soup Bowl was born. The fundraiser asks for a minimum donation of $5 for a bowl of soup and $15 for a soup-to-go; however, the idea is to donate what you would have spent on that meal had you gone out to eat instead.”
Soup Bowl Workshops started at the Vero Beach Museum of Art in mid-August where more than 1,000 wheel thrown bowls are created on and off campus by volunteer potters. The bowls will be available at all the public locations for a minimum donation of $15 on November 7. Hand- crafted soup tureens, made by master ceramicists are raffled for chances that cost $1. The tureens will be on display at the Vero Beach Museum of Art from Thursday, October 25 through Thursday, November 7.
We are thrilled to announce that Indian River Clay will be participating as a
Soup Bowl lunch location this year. Indian River Clay is a clay studio of full and part-time members founded in 2018 to promote the learning and development of pottery skills. Their location will be creating over 300 wheel thrown and hand-built bowls during the next few months.
“Our center was built by a community coming together in 1990 to donate funds to build our facility. Now, the whole community continues to come together each year to support us with Soup Bowl. It is quite impressive.” commented Renee. “We have more than 40 local artists and volunteers helping during the Soup Bowl Workshop, hundreds more who volunteer at approximately 44 serving sites, more than 70 chefs who prepare hundreds of gallons of soup, plus our staff and Advisory Board members who organize it all behind the scenes.”
To learn more about Samaritan Center or get more information about Soup Bowl, please call 772-770-3039 or visit www.catholiccharitiesdpb.org.
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About Samaritan Center
Samaritan Center is a transitional residential facility for homeless families in Indian River County with a structured step-based program and onsite 24-hours-a-day case managers that help pregnant women and homeless families develop the life skills needed for successful reintegration into mainstream society. Admission is open to families of all faiths.
About Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Palm Beach provides 15 social services and ministries at eight locations throughout the Diocese of Palm Beach. Established in 1984, Catholic Charities responds to the needs of the poor and most vulnerable by providing quality programs that serve children, families, and homeless. Catholic Charities of the five-county Diocese of Palm Beach respects life in all of its stages. In living our faith, we create hope for people in need, without regard to religion. Through our programs and ministries, we empower individuals, deliver social services and collaborate with others in building just and compassionate communities. Visit www.ccdpb.org
