Spoonful of comfort and fundraising for scholarships at annual Soup-R Bowl at UNM-Valencia

TOME — The weather might be on a bit of a warming trend, but it’s still soup season, especially this weekend.

The 17th annual Soup-R Bowl is happening again to support scholarships for local art students. The fundraiser is taking place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 8, in the Student Community Center at the University of New Mexico-Valencia Campus, 280 La Entrada, Tomé.

The $20 fee for the event includes a pottery bowl, handmade by one of several Tomé Art Gallery member artists and all the soup you can eat. The bowls and tickets are available for sale before the Soup-R Bowl at the gallery, 2930 N.M. 47, Tome — open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day — and the UNM-Valencia bookstore.

Bowls will also be available for sale on the day of the event.

Event organizer and art gallery owner Jan Pacifico said about 50 bowls have sold, as of Monday afternoon, but noted “the majority sell at the very end and on the day of. We average about 300 a year.”

The soups featured this year will be split pea, Greek lemon chicken, Tex Mex, cream of potato leek, Italian sausage and rocking Moroccan. In addition to the soups, there will also be a wide variety of breads and desserts offered during the event.

“Some people bring their (pottery) bowls and eat, but if they don’t want to, we have disposable bowls,” Pacifico said.

The annual event raises funds for scholarships for art and humanities students attending UNM-Valencia. Pacifico said seven $1,000 scholarships are awarded each year and, now thanks to a partnership with UNM-Valencia, the scholarships are available in perpetuity.

“All the money raised goes into the (UNM-Valencia) Endowment Fund,” she said. “We started this in 2009 and have donated about $75,000.”

Students in the campus’ robust art program directly benefit from the scholarships, she said. A pottery instructor at the campus since 2017, Pacifico said the art department offers a wide variety of classes, including print making, painting, pottery, film digital media arts and sculpture.

The department also regularly hosts faculty and staff and student art shows, as well as shows featuring community artists, at the campus gallery.

“Lots of people come and see the shows,” Pacifico said. “One thing a lot of people don’t realize is the classes are open to the public — you don’t have to be enrolled. Seniors 65 and older can take art classes for $5 a credit hour, for instance.

“I get a lot of seniors taking my classes, people in their 70s and 80s. I’ve had two or three start by just taking a pottery class and they decided to get a college degree.”

The Soup-R Bowl also features a silent auction of artwork and “unique things,” she said. “We can always use volunteers for the events, donations for the auction and breads and desserts.”

Anyone interested in donating to or helping with the Soup-R Bowl can contact Pacifico at 505-866-0582.