The Table That Restores: How Community Table Found a New Home—and How You Can Help Carry It Forward

There are certain kinds of ministry that don’t need complicated language to be understood.
A warm meal.
An open chair.
A room where every person belongs.

For more than five years, that’s what Community Table has been in Elk River. Every month, volunteers cooked homemade meals and welcomed neighbors from all walks of life. People who may never have crossed paths anywhere else found themselves gathered around one long table—sharing stories, checking in on each other, and remembering that no one heals alone.

It wasn’t just hospitality.
It was community.
And community is powerful.

As Minnesota Good Works, we have long admired the heart behind Community Table. Its mission has always echoed the very heartbeat of ours: creating a place where every person feels welcomed, cared for, and seen over a warm meal. It has been sustained by leaders and volunteers who didn’t merely serve; they poured themselves out in love.

When conversations began about the future of Community Table, it quickly became clear that the ministry was entering a season where additional support would be needed to carry its mission forward. Through prayer, reflection, and honest evaluation, the decision was made for Community Table to transition under the care of Minnesota Good Works. It was not a transfer of programs, but a joining of hearts — a natural alignment between two missions who share the same vision: welcoming people with dignity, meeting urgent needs, and building relationships that lead to restoration.

Community Table will host its final meal on Sunday, December 21, 2025, marking the end of a chapter written with love—and the beginning of a new one within MGW’s story. As we prepare for this transition, the monthly gatherings will pause temporarily while we listen, plan, and imagine what the next season could look like.

The heart, however, will remain the same: a place of dignity, connection, and shared hope.

But here is where you come in.

Because the truth is this:

Community Table will only flourish in its next season if the community helps carry it.

And one of the most meaningful ways to do that is through the very thing that makes MGW unique:

Shopping with purpose.

Every time someone shops at the MGW Outlet, chooses flooring from MGW Flooring, or partners with us through weekly deals, they’re not “buying products.”
They’re:

Funding the next season of Community Table

Supporting the transition and relaunch

Keeping free community meals alive in Elk River and beyond

Helping us continue work in exploitation recovery, growth tracks, and whole-person restoration

At Minnesota Good Works, retail fuels restoration.
It’s the engine God gave us so that every urgent need can be met quickly, compassionately, and sustainably—without waiting on government programs or bureaucracy.

And Community Table is now part of that story.

Imagine this with us for a moment:

You’re at MGW Outlet, grabbing a flooring deal or weekly special.
Across town, that purchase becomes part of a meal served to someone who hasn’t felt welcomed in a long time.
A little girl sitting with her mom, finally able to relax because she’s safe.
An older gentleman sharing conversation after months of isolation.
A young man finding resources, support, or just one conversation that sparks hope.

Shopping becomes impact.
Impact becomes relationship.
Relationship becomes restoration.

That is the heartbeat of Minnesota Good Works.

Community Table is entering a new season, and we are honored to carry it forward. But we’re not meant to carry it alone. This is a table we build together—one meal, one act of generosity, and yes… even one purchase at a time.

The story continues soon. And when the tables are set again, they’ll be waiting for the community that helped make it possible.