Chef Charlie Chapel of Foster’s Café & Catering on the Fort Ben campus in Lawrence recently won the Souper Bowl, an annual fundraising event for the Indianapolis nonprofit Second Helpings.
In a social media post following the Feb. 3 event, Second Helpings thanked participants and congratulated Chapel for winning with her Haitian Boulet Stew with Pikliz & Tostones.
“Extra special for us is that Charlie is a graduate of our Culinary Job Training program, in Class 72 in 2013,” the post stated. “This makes her the first graduate to ever win this competition! We’re so proud of Charlie and all she has accomplished.”
Eight area eateries participated in the event, which offers soups from local restaurants for ticketholders to taste. Participants then vote for their favorite soup of the night. Money raised through ticket sales goes toward meals for people in need in central Indiana, according to the Second Helpings website.
Second Helpings operates a three-part approach to addressing hunger and poverty in central Indiana. According to the nonprofit’s website, volunteers and staff “rescue” prepared and perishable food from wholesalers, retailers and restaurants that otherwise would be thrown out.
“That rescued food is used to create more than 4,500 nutritious meals each day that are distributed to more than 90 social service agencies that feed Hoosiers in need,” the website states.
Second Helpings also runs a Culinary Job Training program that prepares adults with barriers to employment for careers in the food service industry. According to the website, Chapel is among more than 900 adults who have graduated from that program.
The next Souper Bowls event is scheduled for Feb. 1, 2025. For more, visit secondhelpings.org.
