In the spring of 2001, a board member from the twenty-year-old Hickory Soup Kitchen met with a group of clergy from Newton about the possibility that one soup kitchen in Catawba County might not be enough…
Interested citizens from Newton, Conover, and other surrounding towns agreed – and got organized.
Energized by faith, compassion, and a spirit of community solidarity, countless visionary people transformed the soup kitchen from an idea to a reality. With the financial sponsorship of local churches, businesses, and individuals, the new Board of Directors spread the word. They gathered food and supplies, and found a location – a three-room house with a small kitchen made available by Beth Eden Lutheran Church.
On January 8, 2002, our doors opened to serve nutritious meals to any men, women and children in need. With tablecloths and fresh flowers on the tables, volunteers served the first meal of vegetable beef soup, crackers, fresh fruit, and homemade pound cake that filled the bellies and hearts of nine guests – and filled the souls of everyone. On this joyful and memorable day, prayers were answered. The Corner Table was born.
In 2003, The Corner Table outgrew its small house and moved into a much more suitable facility – a former restaurant – at the corner of North Main Avenue and W. 2nd Street in downtown Newton.
In 2018, The Corner Table launched a frozen meal program in memory of Debbie Payseur, and named it the Debbie Payseur Packing Program.
In 2019, The Corner Table became the new home of the Catawba County Backpack Program that was created at Catawba County DSS.
Our Name
The Corner Table got its name in four ways. First, several communities are represented, “on the corner” where many roads converge. Second, friends who meet for a meal usually find a “corner table” best for visiting with each other. Third, the Biblical tradition of tithing comes from an ancient custom of landowners leaving a tenth of their crops in the corners of their fields for the poor to harvest for themselves. Fourth, by Holy Coincidence, our building is actually located on a corner.
Our Mission
The Corner Table provides meals with compassion, respect, and dignity to those in our community affected by hunger.