Relief in Action with Advil: The Community Table posted by Something Swanky Pin Share Tweet Email SomethingSwanky is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. I am participating in a sponsored campaign hosted by Advil®. I received compensation for this post. While all opinions stated are my own, I make no claims about Advil® as a product or its effectiveness. I’m talking about something a little different today! It’s not dessert, and it’s not designs. It’s not even a product review! I’m working with Advil to promote their Relief in Action (#reliefinaction) campaign which features community volunteers all over the country. Today I’m taking you out into my own community in Lexington, VA to show you a group of volunteers who are working hard to provide a little relief to those who need it. The Community Table serves a full, wholesome dinner on Monday nights to anyone in the area who wants a meal. But this isn’t your stereotypical soup kitchen. In fact, it’s not a soup kitchen at all! While the homeless are certainly welcome to come for a meal, the regular diners actually aren’t the homeless. They’re people who are trying to make ends meet. They have homes and cars and jobs. And they have bills and mouths to feed. The Community Table simply seeks to provide a little relief to anyone who needs it. They don’t qualify who deserves a meal or who needs it most. Their motto is simply, “Take what you need. Pay what you can.” You have the opportunity to make a donation to The Community Table to cover your meal if you are able to pay. If you can’t pay, nobody bats an eye, and you are certainly welcome back the following week. The Community Table is an entirely volunteer-based operation. Nobody on the board, in the kitchen, or serving on the floor gets paid a dime. That’s right. I said serving on the floor. There is no line for food. When you walk in the door, you’re greeted by a volunteer who asks how many will be dining in your party… Another volunteer seats you at a table set with real plates, glasses, silverware, and even real cloth napkins. They take your drink order, and then bring you a full course meal. Chock full of nutrition, too! Volunteers arrive around midday to prepare for the 6:00pm dinner, which will feed anywhere between 150-170 guests in an hour and a half! They set up all of the tables and place settings (The Community Table doesn’t own their own venue yet, and since they share the building, they are responsible for the set up and taking down of tables and chairs each week), and start cooking the food! This chef from a local retirement community has volunteered his weekly services to the organization… And he has plenty of willing helpers working hard right alongside of him… I’d like so say a great big THANK YOU to those volunteers in my area who are doing their part to give a little relief to our neighbors. I am awed and inspired by your service. And I’d like to encourage YOU to get out in your community and see what you can do to provide some RELIEF! If you live in the Rockbridge County area of Virginia and are interested in The Community Table, you can visit their website for more information here: http://communitytablebv.org/ Here are some ways Advil is making it possible for you to be involved in their movement to provide relief in communities: Follow @reliefinaction on Twitter and Instagram Share how you see relief in action happening around you by posting photos on Twitter and Instagram and using the hashtag #reliefinaction Visit http://www.advil.com/reliefinaction to learn more
I love this. Especially that they actually seat you at a table and serve you. What a dignifying and empowering way to serve a meal to folks in need.
