Former guidance counselor welcomes everyone to The Table

SAVANNAH, Tenn. — A local former guidance counselor is now in the restaurant business.

“Everybody can find a place at The Table,” Helen Hamilton said.

The former church on Belmont Street in Savannah is now a restaurant with a purpose.

Hamilton is a pastor and retired guidance counselor, who says she answered God’s call to open this restaurant.

“Once you realize that there are children who, once they leave that school, there’s very little care provided for them. How can we not answer that call? How can we not?” Hamilton said.

The Table in Savannah is based off Jackson’s ComeUnity Cafe, a place where everyone is welcome to eat, no matter the ability to pay.

“If you can pay, great! If you can pay more, great! If you don’t have the money to eat, come on! We want you!” Hamilton said. 

She says most everything in the building was donated, from the sink to the dishwasher, a several thousand dollar stove.

“I put a call out saying we were stocking the pantry at The Table. Next thing I know, people are coming by with their grocery sacks. They brought everything we asked for. It was amazing,” Hamilton said.

Even her former students stepped in to lend a hand.

“This table was built by the vocational department at Hardin County High School. It’s for people so they never have to sit by themselves. It’s called the family table. Everyone comes in and sits here. If you say you’re by yourself, well you just come in and join the family, because we want everybody to find a place at The Table,” Hamilton said. 

Hamilton is overwhelmed by the support she has received.

“People care. People really care about other people. We hear all the negative, but people care. And they want to help their fellow man,” she said.

The Table is open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Belmont Street in Savannah, behind Yamato.