Food Pantry Network's Signature Fundraiser is April 1 in West Des Moines

A press release from the Des Moines Area Religious Council:

The Des Moines Area Religious Council invites the community to its Sixth Annual Soup Supper and Pottery Sale, on Sunday, April 1, 2012, 4:30-7 p.m., at the West Des Moines Christian Church, 4501 Mills Civic Parkway, West Des Moines. Proceeds will benefit the DMARC Food Pantry Network.

“We are excited to once again welcome everyone to our signature event,” said Jeff Jungman, chair of the DMARC Food Pantry Committee. “Last year more than 500 people came for delicious soup, good conversation and to support a cause we all care about. Our team has extended much thought and care into the planning and we look forward to another warm and wonderful evening together.”

The soup choices are chicken noodle, vegan garden vegetable and the ever-popular chili. The cost of the meal is a free will offering to be accepted at the door. Advance registration is requested so planners can most accurately predict food counts. To register, call 515-277-6969, email: info@dmreligious, or RSVP on Facebook. Facebook users may also invite their friends by using the “invite friends” icon on the Soup Supper event post on Facebook.

All who come will receive a handcrafted ceramic bowl while supplies last. Hundreds of pottery bowls were created for this event by professional potters and their students; and community members who attended the RDG Dahlquist Studios Open Studio in February.

“In this time of great need, the Soup Supper reminds me of our abundance in relationships and resources,” said Sarai Schnucker Rice, executive director for DMARC. “The recession has caused us to make difficult financial decisions in recent months, including reducing food box contents, yet this community has amped up the support and I’m grateful again for what we can accomplish when we all come together. The Soup Supper is a time to celebrate our bounty, and also to consider what more we can do to ensure enough food for all.”

To help promote the event, congregations, businesses and groups are invited to stop by the DMARC main office to pick up a free color poster, M-F, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., 3816 36th Street, Des Moines. For more information and resources, including the poster and flyer to print, see the website: www.movethefood.org/soupsupper.

The DMARC Food Pantry Network consists of 12 separate pantry sites, a centralized warehouse, and numerous community partners. The DMARC Food Pantry Network is health-based and is the largest food pantry network in Iowa. Pantry sites are located in West Des Moines, Ankeny, Johnston, Urbandale, and eight sites in Des Moines. In 2011, the network provided short-term food assistance for nearly 33,000 people, including about 15,000 children or youth under the age of 25 years.

The Des Moines Area Religious Council is an interfaith organization with a core membership of about 137 congregations from ten faith traditions. Recipient of the 2010 Aurora Award from the Des Moines Register, DMARC provides a common means of responding to basic human needs and a context for interfaith dialogue.

MovetheFood is a DMARC-led community initiative to address the entire food system in Greater Des Moines, building on more than 35 years of food assistance work, catalyzing fresh generations and engaging new constituencies to further support a vision for a day when everyone in Polk County has enough to eat.