On March 19th, the Center for Community Engaged Leadership, Learning, and Research hosted its annual Empty Bowls event, which raises funds for a weekly hot-meal program in Milton, Community Harvest.
Attendees purchase a ticket for the event, and with their ticket comes a ceramic bowl made by students at 7th Street Studio and a bowl of soup provided by Chartwells. On top of that, Empty Bowls also had an auction featuring local art and donations from local small businesses, the proceeds of which also go to the Community Harvest Food Program. At each dining table, there were also resources with information about food insecurity both on Bucknell’s campus and in the broader community: Snyder, Union, and Northumberland (SUN) counties.
Rachel Herman, the food security manager at the Union-Snyder Community Action Agency, also presented during the lunch portion of the event on the Snyder, Union, and Northumberland County Community Hunger Mapping project, the results of which were released within the last year.
According to the report, 1 in 8 people in the SUN region, or about 22,000 individuals across the tri-county area, experience food insecurity. Some notable findings provide additional insights into that population. For example, while food insecurity exists across all areas of the region, there are “more concentrated issues in our population centers like Lewisburg, Milton, Sunbury and Shamokin,” said Herman.
Additionally, “one in three Hispanic and Black households are facing food insecurity, which is double the rate of the overall population,” Herman said.
Folks doing work around food insecurity in the area have noted that the challenges of consistently accessing enough nutritious food are being exacerbated right now.
“We’re seeing an increase in numbers because food prices have gone way up, and the extra support during COVID has disappeared,” said Sarah Farbo, Associate Director, Community Engaged Leadership, Learning & Research and manager of Community Harvest. ”People are having to choose between paying rent and buying food.”
Farbo anticipates that Community Harvest will distribute more meals in 2025 than in the year prior. In 2024, Community Harvest distributed about 6,900 meals, and this year, they are expecting to reach about 7,700.
In addition to Community Harvest, there are roughly 50 food assistance initiatives in the region combating hunger through the charitable food system, and as the Community Hunger Mapping project points out, hunger is being addressed through government nutrition programs and systemic approaches to root causes of food insecurity such as income inequality.
Community Harvest heavily relies on volunteers. Christine Hu, has continued her involvement in the program after graduating from Bucknell in 2022. Reflecting on her experience, Christine said “What stands out to me the most are the small moments with the people receiving food… It’s a complicated world when you’re receiving free food, but when you share those small moments, whether they say thank you or just come by once, it means something important.”
“There are so many ways the food system could be improved, and I realized it’s all about starting small and seeing that local impact, which, over time, can lead to bigger, national change.”
Those that attended the event engaged with food insecurity through interactive activities. For example, Bucknell-themed prizes were offered to those that participated in a bingo-like activity.
While acting as a way for people to give back to the community, Empty Bowls is meant to highlight the severity of food insecurity and the people it affects.
“It’s not just about giving people food,” Herman said. “It’s about helping them regain dignity and stability in their lives… There are many ways you can get involved—through volunteering, donations and supporting local food programs.”