Outdoor woodturned bowl sale in Batavia to support food pantries

The Chicago Woodturners and the Windy City Woodturners invite everyone to join them Dec. 5, at the Boardwalk Shops of Batavia at the intersection of Wilson Street and Route 25.

Members of both woodturning clubs will exercise social distancing and safe practices while selling bowls and other woodturned items in the outdoor pop-up market to raise funds for the Northern Illinois Food Bank in Geneva, the Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry and Fox Valley Food for Health organizations.

The fundraiser begins at 10 a.m. and will go until 4 p.m. or until the bowls and other hand-made items are sold out. Shoppers should arrive early for best selection. Although the pop-up market is held outdoors, people are asked to wear masks, practice social distancing and wash hands often "so that we can all safely do what we can to raise funds to help our neighbors in need during this holiday season," organizers stated in a news release about the Empty Bowls for Food event.

The pop-up shop will feature wooden, hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind items produced by local artisans.

"Each item would make a beautiful holiday gift for your friends or family members, or perhaps you might find that ‘something perfect’ for your home décor," the release stated.

The Chicago Woodturners and the Windy City Woodturners are chapters of the American Association of Woodturners. The clubs and members are dedicated to woodturning education and often can be seen at local schools and civic events. Both clubs regularly participate in fundraising activities including Empty Bowls for Food, Pens for Troops and Beads of Courage boxes that benefit several local nonprofit agencies.

The news release was shared by the Batavia Chamber of Commerce at bataviachamber.org.