Dozens of Wausau-area students are lending a hand to help fill empty stomachs.

Isaac Marquardt, a 10-year-old at John Marshall Elementary School in Wausau, has been working on a ceramic bowl with his art teacher and a handful of other students instead of playing outside during recess.

When his bowl is finished, Marquardt will donate it to Empty Bowls, a fundraiser to benefit The Neighbors’ Place, a local nonprofit agency formed in 1987 to help people in need.

Marquardt said he is excited to donate his bowl to a good cause. His teacher, Steve Loftus, who teaches art at several schools in the Wausau School District, said he expects to gather about 200 student-made bowls for the event.

The colorful clay bowls will be given to patrons of Empty Bowls on Oct. 25. They will include a meal donated by local restaurants.

Karla Westcott of Wausau wanted to bring Empty Bowls to Wausau after she attended a similar event in Stevens Point last year.

“I thought Wausau would embrace it wholeheartedly,” Westcott said, adding that many local potters have made bowls as well. She expects 800 bowls, to be available for the event.

Visiting celebrities also have contributed to the event. Bowls signed by Michelle Obama, Sen. Hillary Clinton and musician Jon Bon Jovi will be sold in an auction along with jewelry and wooden bowls made by local artists.

All of the money raised this year will benefit The Neighbors’ Place, but Westcott said she hopes to spread the money among other charities in future years.

Zakk Augustine, 14, of Wausau is making a ceramic bowl in Ryan Priebe’s art class at John Muir Middle School because he thought it would be a nice thing to do.

“(Some families) don’t have enough money to buy food, and they should be able to buy food like everyone else,” Augustine said.