The Open Table

From Tucson to Flagstaff

Jon Katov — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 21:19:07 +0000

News that the faith, government, business and non-profit communities can collaborate to restore people in poverty to the community is traveling across Arizona. In about 60 days, Pantano Christian Church in Tucson will launch the first Table in Pima County. Pima County has more than 500 faith communities. Three hundred miles north, in Flagstaff, we are now in the launch planning process with congregations located in Coconino County, with more than 125 faith communities. Soon, we’ll announce that Tables will be launching in a country 7,000 miles from Phoenix!

Open Table 2009 Annual Report

brentstrange — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:43:00 +0000

2009 was a year of tremendous growth and accomplishment for Open Table. We are proud to post our first Annual Report for review! A few key highlights are:

Wildflower Bread Company is Open Table’s first Business Sector Partner.
Open Table launched its first corporate Table with Multi-Systems, Inc. (MSI),
The Arizona Collaboration for a New Century recognized Open Table as a Blue Ribbon Agency.
A commitment for an additional ten COP Tables was announced following the 2009 City of Phoenix Faith-based Summit where Open Table’s Neighborhood Roots System Initiative was featured.

Read the complete report here (3.90 MB PDF file)

Open Table Selected as Blue Ribbon Agency

Jon Katov — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:28:38 +0000

Open Table and LeaderForce Team Members

In early 2009, Open Table was selected as a Blue Ribbon Agency by the Arizona Collaboration for a New Century. As part of its Arizona LeaderForce Initiative, the Collaboration utilizes a rigorous screening process to identify six social service agencies annually that have proven results in meeting the needs of low-income people in our communities. The Collaboration targets agencies that make the most difference in helping people overcome poverty. These Blue Ribbon agencies receive technical assistance from business executives in a one-year partnership to build their capacity and expand their impact in the community.

The team of professionals who volunteered to serve as Open Table’s 2009 Coaches applied their professional skills to help Open Table develop tools to accelerate the agency’s growth. The year’s work culminated in final presentations by all six agencies in early December. Mary Ritter, Team Coach and Everest College President, commented “It was very gratifying to work with an agency that is so innovative and has had such an impact in transforming the lives of families in poverty.” Jon Katov, Founder and CEO of Open Table shared his perspective on the experience, “ AZ LeaderForce facilitates the investment of new intellectual capital from business professionals to help nonprofits increase their impact in the community. The experience added value for our organization, and we are grateful.”

Open Table wishes to acknowledge the leadership of Steve Capobres and Rodo Sofranac from the Collaboration for a New Century in this yearlong process. Additionally, many thanks to our Team of Coaches who included Mary Ritter, Roger Adair – University of Phoenix, Chris Anderson – University of Phoenix and Joel Bjerkestrand, retired clergy/Adjunct Professor – Western International University.

More About the Arizona Collaboration for a New Century
The Mission: “Building partnerships, engaging leaders”
The Collaboration facilitates partnerships and cultivates leadership for the purpose of pursuing God’s best for vulnerable people – moving the Valley of the Sun forward toward becoming the City of the Future. The Collaboration has been working since 1999 to build partnerships to assist our most effective service agencies to bring real change for the poor and suffering in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. This includes encouraging investment and strengthening the capacity of programs that are making a difference along with forging public/private partnerships that meet basic needs. Visit the Collaboration online at thecollab.org.

Master Licensing is a Foundation for Future Growth

Jon Katov — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:05:12 +0000

Open Table is developing a master licensing concept with an east valley transitional shelter/program and a large faith community. The transitional program has relationships with faith communities and corporations that support it. Over time, the objective of a master license agreement is for the transitional shelter to implement the Open Table model by marketing to and licensing faith communities and corporations with which it has connections, training them and providing candidates for their Tables..with the support of Open Table. The faith community will follow the same path: expanding and training Tables within its own congregation and inviting others in the denomination to become licensed. As the Master Licensee process comes on line, Open Table will dramatically increase its ability to expand in new areas. This concept is a key element of our future growth plans.

Serving Refugee Families

Jon Katov — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 12:25:27 +0000

Tables will serve people who have fled war and persecution in Somalia, Rwanda, Iraq, Liberia to come to the US as refugees. More faith communities with a mission outreach to help refugees are adopting the Open Table model to strengthen these families as they join our communities. We interviewed a Somali woman for a Table forming at a church in Gilbert, AZ that is actively engaged in serving Arizona’s refugees. Caught in the civil war, almost all of her family except a brother was killed. She walked to Kenya and lived in refugee camps until she was relocated to Arizona. She has five children, speaks little English and washes dishes for employment. When we asked about her vision for the future, she wants an English education, a career in computers and a safe place for her children to live. With her Table starting, her restoration has begun!

Starting Over After Prison

Jon Katov — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:12:42 +0000

Tonight, we interviewed a man serving time for a drug charge. His wife and two children fell in to poverty when he became incarcerated. Now, the family struggles to make ends meet and lives in a converted garage. As we explain the details of the Open Table model, he stands up and walks around the table to hug us in tears… Watching this dad with his family makes it clear that while they lack many things, there is an abundance of love between them all. This inmate will join a re-entry Table at a church in South Phoenix that is ready to welcome him and his family. During the first few months of Table operation, Table meetings will need to be held in the prison for the inmate and at the church for the family until his release when the Table will meet united. Open Table’s collaboration with the correctional system seeks to halt recidivism by restoring families to the community. A second re-entry Table is forming now with plans for others to follow.

First Native American Table

Jon Katov — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 01:52:02 +0000

We have made three trips to the Tohono O’odham Nation. Invited by the faith community, we have been welcomed by churches, government and non-profit organizations that want to form a Table in the Nation. In December, will travel to the Nation to present to people who are interested in serving on this Table.

Sector Partners is Launched

Jon Katov — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:30:59 +0000

The new Open Table Sector Partner Initiative was launched with great success tonight! Sector Partners are corporations who educate our Tables about their industry and provide career opportunities for qualified Brothers and Sisters. Our first Sector Partner is Wildflower Bread Company, an Arizona leader in the fast casual restaurant sector. Occupational Chairs from many Tables gathered at Wildflower Headquarters for a presentation by Wildflower Executives to learn about the many career opportunities at Wildflower Bread Co. and within the Arizona restaurant industry. As a result of this Sector Partner relationship, our first Table Sister will begin a new job at Wildflower Bread Company on November 30th!

We Launched a Movement…

Jon Katov — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:01:44 +0000

About four years ago, the first group of Open Table members was given the choice to help an impoverished man named Ernie (Search “Ernie” for his full story). At the time, Ernie lived at Central Arizona Shelter Services (CASS) in central Phoenix. He was a single, senior who was highly motivated to get out of poverty but the odds were stacked against his exodus. He needed assistance with housing, employment, budgeting, transportation, vision and dental care, and legal but was too overwhelmed to know where to even start. Unfortunately, the fragmented social service sector fails to deliver resources to impoverished families in ways that empower transformation to create a pathway to fully exit poverty.

Open Table views families holistically, examining their challenges and opportunities. Twelve volunteers bring their life experiences and personal networks to form a “Table” to assist and encourage the impoverished family. Working together over the course of a year, a Lifeplan for their future is created and the resources required to implement the plan are assembled. Today, some four years later, Ernie remains economically self-sufficient and connected to his friends that helped him years ago.

Saying “Yes” to helping Ernie exit the homeless shelter was the beginning of what has now become the Open Table Movement. News of Ernie’s successful restoration spread to other faith communities and soon, those who originally served Ernie were documenting their process and teaching others how to operate a “Table” in their faith community. The 501c3 non-profit was established in March 2007, as the implementation of this innovative poverty transformation model continued to spread. Today, not only are there Tables in diverse faith communities, but corporations and universities are now hosting Tables as well. Government and other nonprofits have invested their resources to strengthen the Open Table collaboration. Open Table has evolved to include a Neighborhood Roots System (NRS) model which seeks to revitalize targeted neighborhoods by empowering local faith communities to write a business plan for their neighborhood while teaching the networking skills to access the resources needed to implement the business plan. The NRS model is currently in pilot in targeted South Phoenix neighborhoods, with expansion plans to bring the NRS model to other impoverished neighborhoods in Phoenix.

Open Table continues to innovate and expand its collaboration of partners. Recently, the Wildflower Bread Company joined the Open Table collaboration as our first “Business Sector Partner” to work with Table Occupation Chairs to showcase employment opportunities for their company. The City of Phoenix Human Services Department has been instrumental is helping Open Table develop Outcome Data Analysis Tools to effectively measure and report Table performance. The AZ Department of Economic Security has committed to provide DES Navigators statewide to connect Tables to the guidance and resources of this $4 billion state agency. And in July 2009, the AZ Republic ran a feature article about the Neighborhood Roots System pilot in South Phoenix. Most recently, the Tohono O’odham Nation began working to launch its first Table in 2010.

The Open Table movement is dynamic and committed to innovations that will shift resources for the status quo approach of poverty maintenance to one of real poverty transformation. Please contact Open Table to learn more about hosting a Table in your faith community or corporation and the other ways to become involved in the movement. If you know of others who may be interested in hearing about Open Table, please forward this link to them: