Like many other venues serving food, Swannanoa Welcome Table had to cease in-person operations in March 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Their weekly Wednesday meal — offered free to all comers — provided good food, friendship and fellowship for many Swannanoa residents. Its return has been anxiously awaited.

The good news is that the wait is almost over! The Welcome Table board and volunteers are busily working to bring the Wednesday meals back in the near future. The grand re-opening will be announced as soon as a date has been set. A most pressing need right now is for more volunteers to help serve food. If you think you might be able to lend a hand, please contact Welcome Table board chair, Robert Randolph, at 828-712-0756.

When the meals resume, they’ll be offered at the same location, 214 Whitson Ave., in the former Swannanoa United Methodist Church building, across from the former Beacon mill site. There’s abundant parking around the building; the entrance is at the rear into the ground floor. All our welcome, as the name describes!