Chinatown comes alive tonight for February's First Friday celebration. There'll be the usual vendors, wine tastings, art gallery displays and entertainment. But this month also features a charitable event at The ARTS at Marks Garage.

The Hawai'i Potters' Guild will gear up to fight hunger in Hawai'i with its Empty Bowl Project. From 5 to 9 p.m. tonight, buy a bowl of soup at Marks Garage and take home a one-of-a-kind handmade bowl. The $15 donation benefits the Hawaii Foodbank to help feed the growing numbers of Hawai'i's hungry.

The Empty Bowl Project is an international grassroots effort to fight hunger. Local artists make the handmade soup bowls, and the soup is prepared and donated by area businesses. The project began in 1990 in Michigan and has since gained momentum as a fundraiser in many cities. This is the first time this event is being held in Hawai'i.

The local restaurants participating in Hawai'i's event include Side Street Inn, Great Life Cuisine, Cafe Laufer, Downtown @ HiSAM and Tiki's Grill & Bar.

In addition to the Hawai'i Potters' Guild, the bowls are being made by Mauka Ali'i Potters, Koko Head Potters and Fort Shafter Arts + Crafts/Ceramics.

There will also be a silent auction of "signature" bowls made by well-known artists, all signed and ready for collectors. Among them: Shelle Avecilla, Pat Harwood, Daven Hee, Ken Kang, Bob McWilliams and Yukio Ozaki.

It'll be a fun, lively event, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go to the cause. Sadly, it's also a reminder that there are always empty bowls in the world, even here in Hawai'i.