Dear Friends of The Table,

Five years ago Birmingham's homeless men and women were going hungry on the weekends.  A group of caring people decided to try something new in response.

Rather than forming an organization with officers, meetings and by-laws, they reached out to their friends through e-mail and asked them to prepare and serve meals that they would be proud to serve to their own friends.  As one volunteer put it, they wanted to serve "meals that had love cooked in 'em."

They also agreed that the meals would be served inside where guests could eat in comfort, and they would be served banquet style rather than having the guests stand in line.

The response was amazing.  Faith-based organizations, neighborhood groups, and families from all over the region signed up to help.  One of the volunteers who was not part of a group suggested the formation of "patchwork" meals where volunteers could sign up to bring part of the meal and serve it with people they had never met.

After the first several meals, volunteers began to report on their experiences.  And it became clear that the most important part of the meal wasn't the food.  It was the connection that happened between the volunteers and the guests.  Several volunteers reported this was the most meaningful volunteer experience they had ever had.

This connection was especially powerful when the volunteers included children.  Teens who had lived a life sheltered from homelessness came away changed by the experience, and the pre-schoolers who helped serve the lemonade put a smile on every face in the room.

A website was developed with the help of a generous corporate sponsor that made it easier to coordinate meals.  The Birmingham News ran a front page story and several magazines ran feature stories.  Organizations and individuals donated money to help cover expenses.

In five years, over 3,000 volunteers have served more than 50,000 meals.

However, in 2009, things began to change.  Several of the individuals and organizations that had been regular supporters stopped signing up.  The number of new supporters wasn't adequate to replace this loss.  The corporate sponsor of the website was bought by another company and their contribution ended.  It became harder and harder to make sure all of the meals were covered.

After several appeals, it became clear that The Table could not continue.  Sadly, the last meal organized by The Table was in August, 2010.

What will happen to the men and women we were serving? The answer is unknown.

There are many fantastic organizations in our area that work to meet the needs of homeless men and women every day.  Hopefully one or more of them will be able to respond.  They always need money and volunteers.  If you are interested in working with them, call Metropolitan Services For The Homeless at 205.254.8833 and they will put you in touch with an organization in need.

You can view the original Table Online website content (recipes, articles, etc.) here.

It would be impossible to individually thank everyone who has supported The Table.  We are deeply grateful to everyone who cooked and served meals, recruited volunteers, donated money and supported The Table in so many ways.

Finally, I want to personally thank all of you for allowing me to be part of this effort.  Even though I have only met a few of you in person, I feel blessed to have worked with all of you.  The outpouring of love and support you have given to Birmingham's homeless men and women has been inspiring.  I am so grateful to have been a part of The Table with you.

Chris Retan