When Maggie Kane was a young girl, she had a passion for helping others. She wondered why was she so fortunate to have an abundance of healthy food while others in her community could go to bed hungry. She loved to volunteer as a child with her mom at soup kitchens or anyplace that she felt she could make a difference. Could she find a different way to create a place at the table for those in need?

But one thing bothered her as she worked at soup kitchens. She loved the higher calling but felt that there was a something between those being helped and the helpers. She was feeding kids who looked like her, but there was a barrier – a physical one and a virtual one between those giving and those receiving.

Maggie often wondered, how could she give everyone a place at the table?

Rethinking the Soup Kitchen

After graduating from NC State in Raleigh, North Carolina with a background in international studies, business and Italian, she found an opportunity to help with a local non-profit called Love Wins Ministry

While working there, she thought about teaching English abroad. But she knew she had a simple calling in life – to love people.

From this kernel of insight, nourishment, and wisdom, A Place at the Table was born. She wondered how she could create a place where everyone, regardless of ability to pay is welcomed at the table. And how could she help break down that barrier between those giving and those receiving sustenance and nourishment?

Food is a Common Connector

When you meet someone for business or social purposes, food is often at the center. You appreciate both the food and the company. Maggie wondered, what if we could create a place that disrupted the business model of a soup kitchen? She researched pay as you go systems and got together what she called her visionary team. These were friends and acquaintances who shared her passion for creating something that had a magnetic ability to pull the resources toward them. Maggie’s story reminded me of Carroll’s Kitchen in Raleigh, a non-profit that uses food as a magnet for doing good for women who are victims of domestic violence and abuse.

Over time Maggie’s vision group became a board of directors and then an advisory committee of 15 members from the community. Lawyers, volunteers, business people, CPA and others who all shared a joint mission that was anything but conventional.

After several years, she began to have pop up events at local restaurants like NOFO, 18 Seaboard, and BUKU. These pilot tests encourage Maggie to pursue her dream of opening a new and different place where giving, community, and food all have a seat at the table.

A Place at The Table

Six months ago, A Place at The Table was born. Located at 300 W Hargett St #50 in downtown Raleigh, Maggie and her team have opened a place that realizes her dream. Through social media and asking friends to bring friends for coffee, this new restaurant is just getting started disrupting the idea of a soup kitchen.

With a staff of seven, she has almost 75 volunteer hours each day helping her grow her dream. In her first year, she will harness over 20,000 hours of volunteer community support. Let that marinate for a few minutes.

From 7 am- 2 pm Tuesday-Friday and 8-3pm on weekends, a Place at The Table is starting to make a small dent in the universe and is a nourishing sign of what future social entrepreneurs like Maggie can do by connecting their dreams with a community’s needs.

The Future 

Maggie is a sensible young woman who is trying to catch her breath after an amazing burst of energy to open A Place at the Table. She wants to grow slowly and stay true to her mission. Like a seed, she knows it will take care and nurturing to keep producing fruits from her labor.

Why not have your next business meeting or lunch at A Place At The Table? There is a seat waiting for you.

I help non-profits, for-profits and everything in between with sage marketing advice. Hungry to grow? You can set up a time to chat with me about your marketing challenges using my calendar. Email me jeffslater@themarketingsage.com  Call me. 919 720 0995.  The conversation is free and we can explore if working together makes sense. Try my new chat feature on my site if you have a quick question.

Photos courtesy of A Place At The Table

HT to my friend Danny Rosin for introducing me to Maggie and A Place at The Table