TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — The City of Tallahassee held its Longest Table event to bring the community together to break bread and have meaningful discussions.
- The gathering brought hundreds of people to downtown Tallahassee for an evening of food and camaraderie.
- Many people said it was a nice way to meet people in the community.
- Watch the video above to see how the Longest Table brought connection ot our neighbors.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Creating meaningful connections at one long welcoming table, that’s what the city of Tallahassee said is what the longest table dinner is all about.
Many who came out talked about a variety of topics that affect our communities.
"We are an All-America city because of her people," said John Dailey, Mayor of Tallahassee. "And so when we can bring all the citizens out to break bread and share a meal, it's a great time."
520 seats, that’s how many chairs were set up at this year’s longest table event. Each one is filled with neighbors ready to connect and learn from others, like Jubilie Horn, who was excited to learn from her elders.
"[Ask] about how their life has been," said Jubilie Horn, neighbor. "So I would ask them about, like, what was it like back then? What did y'all wear? What was y'all interest and stuff?"
The longest table started in Tallahassee over 10 years ago. Even though it's been on a few-year hiatus due to covid, there was so much community connection you would have thought it was a weekly event.
Mayor John Dailey says it’s a nice way to talk to people you may not meet otherwise.
"I'm looking to connect with everybody," said Dailey. "And one of the great things about this event is we get people from all different walks of life, from all over the community that come together to share a meal."
I asked neighbors who they met at the longest table.
"I met this lovely table right here," said Jontae Sanders
"The mayor," said Kian Esfahani.
"A city commissioner," said Jermaine Miller
"Some really nice people, actually," said Horn.
This year’s longest table also celebrated Tallahassee’s recent honor as a 2025 All-America City. However, the goal of the event is for neighbors to meet new people and build new meaningful connections.
"So we got to talk about a lot of different things, more so about ourselves, things we enjoy eating, places we enjoy traveling, just having a natural conversation about who we are," explained Jontae Sanders, neighbor
Dailey said that this was the first time since 2019 that they held this event, and the turnout tonight showed how important it is for the community
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