Marcella’s Kitchen volunteers in conjunction with local food vendors are set to host the sixth annual Empty Bowl Project.
This year’s event will take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 9 in the Marshall County High School Commons area and will feature selections from 18 local restaurants and food vendors. Volunteer restaurants include Patti’s, Majestic Steakhouse, Ponderosa, Subway, Habanero Mexican Grill, Wendy’s 4 Little Pigs, Hutchen’s Barbecue, The Brass Lantern, Polar Ice Concessions and S&D Coffe and Tea, among others.
Tickets are $15 each; children 5 and younger may enter free.
Proceeds from this year’s event go to benefit Marcella’s Kitchen building fund to renovate the newly purchased building on the former Marshall County Hospital campus in Benton. Marcella’s board members closed on the facility, the former Stilley Professional Building on George McClain Drive, Sept. 1. Organizers intend to open up the inside of the facility that once contained six doctors offices for the purposes of constructing a commercial kitchen and dining hall.
Volunteers hope to expand services in a more central location, founder Marcella Perkins said in a previous interview. Renovations could take up to a year to complete.
The community kitchen opened its doors May 16, 2011, in the current facility at the Draffenville Community Center/Lions Club, with a volunteer base dedicated to providing free meals to those in need. Since then, volunteers have served more than 100,000 meals in the county. Meals are served from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The kitchen will continue to operate in the existing location until renovations are complete on the new building.