SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— Ozarks Food Harvest is partnering with Panera Bread to host the 13^th annual Empty Bowls fundraiser Sept. 24 to Oct 1 to raise funds for their Weekend Backpack Program. Holmes and Griffeth Financial Planners is the presenting sponsor.

Local artists donated handcrafted bowls that will be available for purchase online from Sept. 24 to Sept. 30 at bit.ly/emptybowlsonline or in-person at Panera Bread on S. Campbell Avenue in Springfield on Oct. 1 from 3-7 p.m. The Woodturners of Southwest Missouri, a chapter of the American Association of Woodturners, have been creating and donating bowls for the event since 2014.

"The Woodturners of Southwest Missouri are always passionate about giving back to the community, and Ozarks Food Harvest is an organization that is near and dear to our hearts. No child should go hungry, and we are honored to be able to contribute to this worthwhile cause,” said Marian Stahl-Chamberlain, president of the Woodturners of Southwest Missouri.

In southwest Missouri, 1 in 4 children face hunger. The funds raised during the Empty Bowls fundraiser will support Ozarks Food Harvest’s Weekend Backpack Program, which provides nearly 1,800 children across 15 counties in southwest Missouri with nutritious and accessible weekend meals throughout the school year. The first 250 donors online or at the in-person event will receive free soup and bread, courtesy of Panera.

“The empty bowls remind us of the children in our community who don’t know where their next meal may come from,” said Bart Brown, president and CEO of Ozarks Food Harvest. “By purchasing a bowl, you’re helping kids facing hunger right here in the Ozarks bring nutritious food home each weekend.”

Since 2014, Empty Bowls has raised more than $90,000 to provide more than 293,000 meals through Ozarks Food Harvest’s programs and network of charities.