Sprawling lunch party taking over Dayton’s Courthouse Square — right now!

A very long table is coming to the center of downtown Dayton.

The Longest Table Dayton, a winner from 2016 UpDayton Summit, has held 11 free dinners since December designed to build relationships by connect people and communities.

This time the group meal is taking place over lunch, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m on July 20 at Courthouse Square,  23 N. Main St. in downtown Dayton.

>> MORE: Dayton named on ‘America’s best towns ever’ list

Unlike the other meals the group has hosted, participants are encouraged to pack or purchase lunches for the event downtown.

Credit: Submitted

Credit: Submitted

 Bryan Stewart, the Longest Table's founder, said the idea for the downtown lunch is to engage downtown workers in community building.

>> MORE: Here is why Bryan Stewart was a Daytonian of the Week

“We want them to meet people from Dayton and hear their stories and hear about some of the exciting things they have not been exposed to like Levitt Pavilion and the Arcade,” Stewart said. “What better way to spice up your afternoon or lunch, but to go out for a 100-person table?”

>> MORE: Dayton’s Levitt Pavilion announces first concert

The July meal is in partnership with The Downtown Dayton Partnership and Montgomery County’s The Square is Where daily summer lunch series that features free live entertainment.

Stewart said food can be purchased from nearby restaurants or food trucks operating in the square.

>> MORE: These 3 winning UpDayton ideas want to change Dayton for the better 

The Longest Table is getting longer.

The program was recently mentioned in the Baltimore Sun  as part of an article about a similar project launching in that city.

Longest Table Dayon was patterned after a similar project in Tallahassee, Florida that holds annual dinners.

>>MORE: Robert Redford, Casey Affleck movie was filmed in downtown Dayton

Stewart said a New York group came to Dayton to observe the Longest Table’s April session in the Twin Towers neighborhood and plans to launch a project in that city. Longest Table Dayton held its first event in October, where more than 500 relative “strangers” broke bread with one another on the Third Street Bridge (The Peace Bridge) during the giant dinner party.

“I think good ideas are contagious,” Stewart said. “I also think we live in a very divided society. A lot of people who don’t want to be in such a polarized society are really receptive to the idea of sitting down and talking  to someone that is not over a keyboard.”

About the Author