14th annual Souper Mudfest happening in Bay St. Louis Saturday

The annual Souper Mudfest is happening in Old Town Bay St. Louis Saturday.

From 4 to 6 p.m. at the Main Street Methodist Church you can purchase artisan soup bowls for only $20. Not only do you get a one-of-a-kind bowl from a local artist, but free soup from over 20 local businesses.

You might be wondering why Mudfest is in the name. The first benefit happened after Katrina when the city was recovering. The streets of downtown were practically rubble and everyone wore shrimp boots to get around.  So local artists sold decorated shrimp boots to attract shoppers.

Now that the city’s streets are fixed, the local potters decided to sling mud instead and craft soup bowls. Hancock County Tourism Bureau Director Myrna Green said, “Fourteen years later, we have a wonderful following. People that come every year that collect their artist bowls.”

Steve Barney with Mad Potter Pottery Studio said, “We’ve been working on making bowls since Christmas. I’ve got 170. We have 360 bowls from this studio we’ll be selling tomorrow. It’s really a way for us to bring awareness to the food insecurity and give money back to our community. It’s a big fundraiser for our town.”

The proceeds go towards three organizations: the community garden Ruth’s Roots, the Old Town Merchants Association, and Hancock County Tourism.