Brownwood Dinner Table ?

Discovering an appetite for chatting

Participants want Abilene Dinner Table to continue

By Brye Butler / Reporter-News Staff Writer
January 30, 2005

The dishes are stacked away, leftovers have been eaten - but guests at the city's largest simultaneous dinner party are still talking.

And most want a second helping.

The first Abilene Dinner Table, on Jan. 22, was a gathering of community members - more than 400 who ate at church halls, private homes and public venues - who quickly got acquainted, shared a meal, discussed issues affecting their lives for a few hours and bettered themselves and the community from the experience.

Each table at the event, which was spearheaded by the Abilene Reporter-News' editorial board, had a facilitator to keep the conversation moving. Participants wrote down comments and what they would like to see happen next.

Feedback was given to Reporter-News Editor Terri Burke.

Nearly all the other participants said they would like to attend or host a dinner table again. Now, organizers and participants alike are wondering what's next.

Burke said she hopes a group or organization will step forward to take the lead on Abilene Dinner Table.

Based on participants' positive experience at the ACCESS Learning Center, table host Mike Hernandez said, he would like to see more meetings planned to involve more people.

The main accomplishment at his site was bringing together a variety of people - a good first step, Hernandez said.

Heather Hodges, a participant at Highland Church of Christ, agreed. She suggests quarterly meetings, with different people grouped together, with a specific goal set each time. In between the dinners, the groups can work to accomplish the goals together.

An immediate issue she suggests addressing is minority outreach efforts. Hodges said she would like to see more diversity at the dinner tables.

Although the majority of tables around town were diverse, the people at her table were all white.

Table host Lynda Calcote agreed this would be a good issue to tackle.

''All of us were really disappointed at the low Hispanic turnout,'' Calcote said of the group at Aldersgate United Methodist Church.

She suggested sending personal invitations, rather than soliciting participants through the newspaper, as something for participants to work on together before the next dinner table.

In addition to diversity, topics at dinner tables around town included wages, cultural events, church involvement in the community, youth and education.

Feedback on the event was overwhelmingly positive, according to comment cards and notes taken by table hosts. Participants described the dinner as enjoyable, thought-provoking and a chance to meet fellow Abilenians they would otherwise never encounter.

''I was made aware of my tunnel vision about my community,'' one participant wrote on a comment card. ''I have figured out that I came here with a certain amount of, 'What is there in this for me?' What I'm leaving with is the knowledge that what benefits the community is what benefits me.''

Abilene Dinner Table participant responses

Positives in the community:

* Friendly.
* Overall light traffic.
* Low crime rate.
* Religious.
* Good quality of life.
* Dyess Air Force Base.
* Higher-education institutions.

Areas of concern in the community:

* Not enough job opportunities.
* Appearance - too much litter and blight.
* Not enough youth activities.
* Need stronger minority representation.
* Poor roads.
* Inability to retain university graduates.
* Congested traffic in certain commercial areas.

Participants' suggestions for what's next:

* Continue to meet at regular intervals with different people at different venues.
* Meet with different groups; after two years, have everyone meet together to collaborate.
* Meet for various occasions such as ''Happy Hour.''
* Original dinner table participants meet in one month and bring a guest, who is seated apart; discuss a specific topic each time.
* Meet again with same group to brainstorm community-improvement ideas.
* Future meetings with concrete goals/topics outlined.
* Gather all hosts for a meeting to relay issues, discuss ways to take action.

Comments from participants:

* ''Today (Jan. 22) has been a blessing for my wife and me. x85 Thank you so much for this wonderful evening.'' - Randy Scott
* ''My only regret is that I did not publicize or encourage more of my friends and neighbors to take part.'' - Danyel Rogers
* ''I don't usually like to get out of my comfort zone, but I'm glad that I did.'' - Crystal Sutton
* ''I didn't know what this would be about tonight, but it has been enjoyable, educational and just a pleasant experience.'' - Ruth Scott
* ''I believe a 'seed' was planted within me. I would love to continue.'' - Evelyn Ferguson

Contact nonprofits writer Brye Butler at butlerb@reporternews.com or 676-6765.

source: http://www.reporter-news.com/abil/nw_local/article/0,1874,ABIL_7959_3509343,00.html