Tickets are now on sale for the Domestic Violence Intervention Program’s 2023 Souper Bowl. Since it started 26 years ago, the Souper Bowl has grown into the nonprofit’s biggest annual fundraising event, helping to ensure DVIP can continue its mission of advocating and providing support services for survivors of intimate partner violence, human trafficking, stalking and harassment
“This event is vital because it provides financial support to ensure our advocates are there when victim-survivors need them,” Alta Medea-Peters, director of community engagement for DVIP, said in a statement. “In addition, the Souper Bowl demonstrates that we, as a community, support and believe victim-survivors. This event shows them that they are not alone.”
This year’s Souper Bowl is being held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel and Conference Center in Coralville on Thursday, Feb. 23, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. A to-go option, with drive-through pick-up, and a delivery option are also available.
The event will feature 30 soups from local restaurants, including chicken noodle from 2 Dogs Pub, Tuscan tomato soup from Bread Garden and tomato Florentine from Bluebird Cafe in North Liberty, Nodo’s broccoli cheese and bacon corn chowder from Red’s Alehouse. Oasis and Trumpet Blossom Cafe will be providing vegan options.
There are six ticket options for the Souper Bowl:
• $100 VIP Delivery and Pick-Up (5 soups, commemorative mug, VIP gift, and homemade confetti cookies, sales end on February 8th)
• $75 VIP In-Person (Early access to soups, bowls, priority seating, commemorative gift and homemade confetti cookies, tickets must be purchased in advance)
• $35 General Pick-Up (2 soups and commemorative mug, sales end February 8th)
• $30 General Admission (Bowl and unlimited soup, tickets can be purchased in advance or at the door)
• $30 Gift of Soup (purchase soup for staff, clients, or someone you want to share the soup-port with)
• $15 General In-Person volunteer/student/sliding scale (unlimited soup, tickets can be purchased in advance or at the door)
As always, kids 12 and under eat for free.
DVIP grew out of an initiative launched by the University of Iowa’s Women’s Resource and Action Center in the late 1970s. It opened its first shelter for people threatened by domestic violence in 1980, and now DVIP covers eight counties in southeastern Iowa — Johnson, Iowa, Cedar, Des Moines, Henry, Lee, Van Buren and Washington.
The nonprofit provides emergency shelter, pet shelter, peer-to-peer counseling, education and prevention at the state and federal level, youth advocacy, a 24-hour hotline and other services to victims and survivors.
“The number of services we provided to those clients has increased 90 percent [year over year],” Medea-Peters said last fall. “This underscores our need for resources to serve victim/survivors in our community.”
In addition to participating in fundraisers like the annual Souper Bowl, anyone interested in making a donation to support DVIP’s work can do so through its website. Volunteer opportunities are also available.
