STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Wood River Valley residents went gaga for bowls Sunday. Ceramic bowls created by potters at Boulder Mountain Clayworks, to be specific.

Doris Weiler and Christel Nicholson showed off their new soup bowls that have little places for slots that they can rest chopsticks. Susan Beasom, a Utah resident visiting Steve and Lulu Klatt, waxed eloquent about her dark blue bowl, which sported artistic textures on the exterior.

And Steve Klatt showed off his Turtle bowl with its four feet and a tail.

Lulu Klatt says the drive from Bellevue was worth it for this one-of-a-kind treasure.

“I love the shape. All the other bowls are round—this one’s not,” he said.

The bowls offered at the annual Empty Bowls events have become cherished objects both for art and utilitarian purposes. Many of those who attend the event anguish over getting the right bowl, which range in size from tiny cone-shaped affairs to large vessels capable of holding a quart of cereal.

Of course, it doesn’t hurt that these bowls are filled with hearty tasty soups and salads donated by local restaurants or that the money raised by the annual event goes to the Blaine County Charitable Fund to help valley residents in times of need.

Rasberry’s served up a tasty Vegan Red Chile and Vegetable Posole for those coming in from a snowy day, and NourishMe, a Vegan Thai Vegetable Lentil Curry that had a sassy kick to it.

Steve Klatt is in love with his Turtle bowl.

Galena Lodge provided a Hearty Potato Sausage and Kale Soup; Sawtooth Brewery, a Creamy Mushroom with Baby Kale; The Hunger Coalition, a Thai Sweet Potato Chili; Syd’s Soups, a Potato Corn Chowder; CK’s, its beloved Winter Curry Vegetable Soup; the Ketchum Grill, a Mushroom Barley, and Atkinsons’ Market, Stan’s Chili with green chilies and jalapeno and serrano peppers.

“So good,” said one man who tried to keep a grin on his face even as he spooned the Vegan Thai Vegetable Lentil Curry into his mouth.

Organizers had wondered if the snow, which blanketed valley with more than eight inches by morning, would keep partakers away. But many of the 280 who had pre-paid via a new online system were already lined up when they opened their doors at 11. And others trickled in throughout the morning, braving deep snow in unplowed parking lots to do so.

“Everyone’s welcome to try as many soups as they want,” said Beth Inouye, who was ladling the soup into bowls with the help of Nancie Tatum and Jima Rice. “Sometimes, people come out and they’re stressed because they don’t know which soup to choose, and I tell them, ‘You don’t have to be stressed. You can try one; then, another.’ It’s a blast, and I’m always amazed how many people come out for this.”

Beth Inouye serves up a bowl of CK’s Winter Curry Vegetable Soup to a young partaker.

The Blaine County Charitable Fund’s emergency assistance programs provided support to 126 households facing financial instability due to a low snow year during the winter of 2023-24. About 40 percent of the community—or 10,000 residents—are one crisis away from financial instability, said Mary Fauth, the organization’s executive director.

Those who have received help from the Blaine County Charitable Fund include a 71-year-old widow, who needed help paying rent after she had to retire from her work as a hair dresser due to debilitating arthritis. A maintenance worker said he and his animals were able to stay warm after BCCF helped him pay his power bill.

BCCF helped a woman and her 8-year-old son move from their freezing trailer to a warm hotel room during the winter months. A Sun Valley Resort employee got rental assistance and help consolidating her debt so she could make lower payments. And BCCF found a car and provided a short-term loan for a construction worker needing a vehicle to get to his various jobs.

Fauth said she loves the sense of relief she and her co-workers are able to give someone going through a hard time, “especially when you don’t have anywhere else to turn.”

Doris Weiler and her sister Christel Nicholson scored bowls with slots for chopsticks. “We use our other bowls for things like pretzels and nuts,” she said.

The charitable fund has touched all kinds of people in the community, she added.

“People say, ‘I didn’t know they were going through a hard time,’ ” she said. “And I’m afraid it is going to get worse for people as the tariffs drive up the cost of food and gasoline in a place that’s already has such a high cost of living.”

DID YOU KNOW?

$100 powers a home for a month

$250 provides a temporary stay at a hotel

$500 warms a home for the winter

$2,500 secures new housing for a family

$5,000 bridges the gap in closing on a home for those providing essential services like law enforcement and mail delivery.

To learn more, visit https://www.blainecf.org/.