Official Website of the
Catholic Diocese of Little Rock
Families: Change world with CRS Rice Bowl
Published: February 13, 2026
Click on the button above to donate online to CRS Rice Bowl for the Diocese of Little Rock. Seventy-five percent of the money raised goes to support CRS’ humanitarian and development programs outside the United States, while 25 percent remains in our local diocese and is used to assist low-income families through Catholic Charities of Arkansas.
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"Ongoing conflicts, extreme weather, and persistent inflation are driving up food prices, pushing more families into hunger. According to the United Nations, nearly 700 million people worldwide face hunger today, just as cuts to humanitarian aid are leaving millions with fewer lifelines. This dangerous combination makes faith communities and programs like CRS Rice Bowl more critical than ever." — CRS Rice Bowl
Giving alms through CRS Rice Bowl can make a global difference for millions of our sisters and brothers experiencing the greatest need. Plus, it is a great way for families to experience the fruits of Lent together. This Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Lenten project encourages participants to perform a simple sacrifice by substituting a low-cost meatless meal for more expensive dining once a week, and put the money saved in the cardboard "rice bowl."
If you didn't get a rice bowl at church or school, you can download the materials to make one for free. You can also donate online. Use the Lenten calendar each day to practice the Lenten pillars of prayer, fasting and almsgiving.
Each year, CRS Rice Bowl highlights families from countries that benefit from this project. This year, families in Ghana, Guatemala and Timor-Leste are featured. Through their stories, rice bowl participants learn how they overcome factors that lead to hunger, including flooding and drought.
Since its inception in 1975, more than $350 million has been given through CRS Rice Bowl to support programs that prevent hunger and poverty worldwide.
“The past year has been incredibly difficult for so many families around the world,” said Sean Callahan, CRS’ president and CEO. “We’re seeing more people go hungry just as the resources available to help them are being reduced. CRS Rice Bowl offers Catholics in the U.S. a meaningful way to respond and affirm that no one is forgotten.”
“Solidarity is a way of showing strong, unwavering commitment to the common good,” said Bishop Patrick M. Neary, chairman of CRS’ board of directors. “Through CRS Rice Bowl, we have the opportunity to put our faith into action, to walk alongside our sisters and brothers who face hunger and to affirm that we stand with them, even at a time when global support is being scaled back.”
More than 11,000 Catholic parishes and schools across the United States participate in CRS Rice Bowl each year. In the Diocese of Little Rock, $20,383.75 was collected through this program in 2025.
Seventy-five percent of the money raised goes to support CRS’ humanitarian and development programs outside the United States, while 25 percent remains in the local diocese from which the donation came. The 25 percent that remained in Arkansas was $5,095.94 which was used to assist low-income families through Catholic Charities of Arkansas.
In addition to dropping money in rice bowls, participants can take advantage of the program's weekly stories of hope that introduce families from around the world and recipes from various countries for meatless meals and stations of the cross for Fridays during Lent. These materials are designed for families, parishes, educators and dioceses in English and Spanish.
For more information, visit CRS Rice Bowl or contact Megan Moore at (501) 664-0340, ext. 379.
