Nonprofit Longer Tables Prepares to Host 5,280 Guests at a Mile-Long Table

“There was this huge lawn and oak trees, and one long 70-foot table. It was beautiful,” says Tim Jones, executive director of Longer Tables. “[There were] real place settings and wine glasses and decorations,” he continues, recalling his first table experience eight years ago, when Cari Jenkins invited him and many other strangers to come together for a meal. Through that experience, he met some of his now-closest friends. “They’re like family. I can’t imagine having never met them.”

Feeling profoundly connected to his community, Jones remembers thinking, “How can I be a part of this?” So he partnered with Jenkins, and they, along with Longer Table boardmembers, have hosted over forty similar events.

The nonprofit organization’s motivation relates to a 2018 survey by Cigna Healthcare. One startling statistic from the study reads, “Two out of five Denver residents report sometimes or always feeling alone.” Jones further explains: “We were experiencing disconnection and increasing levels of depression and anxiety twenty years ago — not to mention a pandemic that hyper-disconnected us in the last few years.”

While Jones admits that “the table is not designed to solve any major human crises or societal issues,” he believes that these events “help people feel more connected to their communities, to their families, even more to themselves.”

He explains, “When we set tables, we invite people from all walks of life. We want people to share a meal with someone of a different ethic background, racial background, socioeconomic background," adding that one of the organization’s major goals is to support “racial, cultural and class reconciliation.”
Jones compares these events to “slow-cooked food” — an intentional way of spending time with one another. “At the end of the day, we’re all struggling with the same fundamental things: that’s love, that’s human connection, being seen. We want to make people feel seen and known,” he says.

On December 6, Longer Tables hosted a dinner at the historic Rose Event Center in downtown Golden. As with previous events, guests were instructed to bring a shareable dish based on their last names. Those with first initials A through J contributed an entree; K through S, a side; and T through Z, a dessert. But otherwise, the invitation lacked details about the evening’s agenda.

“We don’t give [guests] a lot of details,” says Jones. “We’ve had people show up thinking it was going to be a table of eight, and there were eighty people.”

When asked how Longer Tables addresses introverted guests, Jones responds, “We create, I think, such an inviting atmosphere that most people feel very taken care of and seen once they arrive. We do little things to make it more comfortable, like name tags. We invite you to sit in a certain place. There’s a welcome and some structure to it.”

“There is directed conversation,” he adds, alluding to the prompt cards seen on the cocktail and dinner tables. At the most recent event, guests took note of these cues. One prompt read, “What are three things you would like to leave as a legacy?” — inciting conversation around empathy and positivity, and skills like cooking, gardening and art.

Of course, conversation also circulated around the potluck meal. Home-cooked dishes included creamy pastas, crockpot stews, roasted vegetables and big bowls of leafy salads alongside boxes of pizza and ready-made grocery store items. Jones laughs, “You can just stop by Costo and grab a chicken. But we also invite people to bring meals that represent their story.”

He relays this back to Longer Tables’ cross-cultural goal, saying, “To share the food that you know and love, and then to experience someone else’s food that they know and love — it creates this incredible moment of bonding. It’s a beautiful thing to share and to contribute.”
These events have helped the organization prepare for its biggest endeavor yet: The 5280 Table. In the summer of 2023, Longer Tables plans to host 5,280 guests at a mile-long table. However, this large-scale event won’t be a potluck.

“Because of policies and code, we can’t have 5,280 people bring food from home. So we saw a great opportunity to invite local restaurants [and] catering companies,” says Jones. He adds that it’s also a “great opportunity for the diversity of the city. We’ll have storytelling on that food, like where this recipe came from and why they decided to provide this meal.”

Feeding guests, though, is just one of many logistical aspects of planning. For the venue, Longer Tables applied for a permit with the Denver Parks and Recreation Department in November. However, Jones shares, “We’ve been told that we will not be allowed to do this event at any city park, which, frankly, was disappointing. ... We're looking at other options right now. Our current idea is to either shut down Broadway or Colfax. If that doesn’t work, it would be on private property.”

When it comes to the guest list, Jones explains, “If you break it down, 660 eight-foot tables make up a mile. So we will seek out 660 hosts that will invite seven people. Because we want to remove all barriers of entry for all people to be at the mile-long table, there is no charge. We will ask hosts for donations. That donation can be $5,280 or $5.28 — whatever they can afford. But their guests will be free.”
To further make the 5280 Table possible, Longer Tables is “in the process of seeking corporate sponsors to help foot the bill,” says Jones. He emphasizes to the companies and foundations he’s in talks with that it will be "the best money [they’ve] ever spent,” emphasizing “the benefit of bringing our city together.”

Until then, Longer Tables will continue to put on smaller events, while also encouraging others to host their own tables. “We’ve always had a table kit available for anyone to borrow,” says Jones. It includes one hundred place settings and up to thirteen eight-foot tables. He adds, “Next year, we have a goal to have a trailer that is more of a block party kit — with the tables and all the place settings, as well as decorations and chairs.” Jones hopes that the next phase will involve a truck, allowing hosts to set up a table event in 45 minutes.

When hosting your own table, Jones’s key piece of advice is to “find someone to do it with, put a date on the calendar and commit to it.” He acknowledges hosts’ concerns around turnout, but says, “It’s all right if [some of those invited] say no. I guarantee you, two-thirds of the people will say yes, and they will love it.”

“You can invite the usual suspects, but invite the people that don’t feel seen," he adds. "Every person, no matter what their story is or what their background is, can find themselves at the table.”