Perhaps as much as any other community fundraiser, the Clark County Empty Bowls initiative is truly a team effort.

The charitable event to address and raise awareness for hunger in our community set a new benchmark in its ninth year Friday by selling all 300 bowls that were made for the event before the event’s 1 p.m. end time.

The fundraiser generated more than $5,000.

The effort is a collaborative work by Clark County Community Services, Dirty South Pottery, My Father‘s Garden, the Clark County 4-H, George Rogers Clark High School JROTC, First Presbyterian Church and many other volunteers.

Empty Bowls is a national hunger awareness campaign started 25 years ago in North Carolina, growing to hundreds of communities across the country.

It centers on a community lunch where diners pay for handmade ceramic bowls filled with a basic vegetarian soup recipe complemented with a piece of homemade bread.

They dine together to raise money and awareness of those who struggle to find food.

Clark County is not exempt from this social issue that impacts millions of Americans who aren’t always sure how they will be able to put the next meal on the table.

A host of organizations and churches work year-round to address this issue and bridge the gaps. This fundraiser is an important component of that effort.

We applaud everyone involved for their commitment and willingness to make a difference and selflessly donate their time to help those in need. For Ashley and Carvel Norman, owners of Dirty South Pottery, it is almost a year-around project that they will soon begin working on again.

All sustainable progress in our community is accomplished through incremental efforts and, in this case, a difference is truly being made one bowl at a time.