Members of the Rotary Club and TRAIL package and serve soup to attendees of the 2024 Empty Bowls event at Revival.

Each year, the Athens Empty-Bowls project hosts an event at the First Presbyterian Church “on the Square” to remind others that there are people in their community who may not be as fortunate as they are.

“Each ticket holder gets two cups of soup, bread and a handmade pottery bowl as a reminder that someone’s bowl may be empty,” event organizer Emily Clem said.

Local restaurants donate different soups for the event, allowing ticket holders to enjoy two cups of soup alongside their handmade bowl that they get to take home.

”The weather was lovely and the soup delicious,” Clem said.

The proceeds of the 300 tickets sold this year will go to Limestone County Churches Involved to provide for children and the homeless in the area.

“All proceeds will go to LCCI, backpack programs in the city and county, and agencies that feed the homeless,” Clem said.

On the day of the event, Rotary Club members picked up the soup from the 14 donating restaurants and brought it to Revival for the event. Once there, members of TRAIL — a group composed of 17 local students dedicated to enhancing the lives of the youth of Limestone County through their time, talent and treasure — served the soup to attendees.

The bowls were made by local potters, and extra products were created to be sold at the event’s “Makers Market.”