KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A new ministry in Alcoa is fighting food insecurity.
The Longer Table opened about a month ago in Blount County at First Baptist Alcoa. Each week, the ministry grows in volunteers and people served.
The first week it had 15 people, and this past Friday it had over 100.
However, before The Longer Table opened its doors, there were no free, local meals or food pantries open Friday through Sunday. It made for a three-day stretch without food for families experiencing food insecurity.
The man who started The Longer Table, Tom Williamson, knows that three-day stretch of hunger all too well.
He lived through it 3 years ago.
Tom said he and his daughter, Adamina, became homeless purely by accident.
He was working as a security guard in Las Vegas, on Oct. 1, 2017. It was the day he lived through the largest mass shooting in U.S. history. 58 people were killed and nearly 500 were injured. That was the day Tom decided he didn't want to raise his daughter in Las Vegas.
They started traveling to start somewhere new.
"We were driving through Alcoa, and my car literally caught on fire and burned up and left us stranded here. It was just me and my daughter," Tom said. "Then, while we were stranded here, the apartment that we were living in in Las Vegas had actually caught on fire and was destroyed."
Within a matter of days, the Williamsons lost everything.
"It could happen to anybody at any time," Tom said.
While Tom and Adamina found themselves in a new situation, they also discovered the resources available to people experiencing homelessness.
The Williamsons were able to get plugged in with Family Promise in Blount County.
"Family Promise is the program that we went through to get out of homelessness. Both me and my daughter. Family Promise really helped us out a lot," Tom said.
He and his daughter were also able to find free hot meals every day of the workweek; however, after Thursday night dinner they didn't know where their next meal was coming from.
"There's several times that we've had to go from Thursday night's meal all the way until Monday night's meal without having eaten anything," Tom said.
There were no free meals or food pantries open from Friday to Sunday.
As a father, Tom did everything he could to provide for his little one. The two of them have been a pair since the day 10-year-old Adamina was born.
"I was raised with no mom in my life. My dad has been taking care of me since the day I was born," Adamina said.
Through Family Promise and Tom's skills as a mechanic, he and Adamina were able to get out of homelessness.
"There were some hard times, but this is a good time now," Adamina said.
Most people wouldn't turn back, but Tom was determined to be the change he wanted to see.
"I wanted to start The Longer Table. I wanted to make sure the difference with my ministry was that we also have the pantry," Tom said. "So, we cook them a nice home-cooked hot meal every Friday, and then we send them with food to get through the rest of the week."
Tom said it's a resource he wishes they had when they were experiencing homelessness. He also thinks the ministry is helpful for Adamina to understand the importance of lifting others up.
"I think it's teaching her to care about other people more than yourself," Tom said. "She looks forward to it. You know, she, she's in here with me all day cooking. She's one of my servers."
Adamina said she admires her dad for the work he's done to make Blount County a better place.
"He's my role model. He taught me so many things my entire life, and I can't believe he's done this all on his own," Adamina said.
Tom said the name "The Longer Table" is meant to be all-inclusive. It's meant to be an invitation to everyone.
"It's our responsibility as Christians as well as human beings to be welcoming and accommodating to people of all different circumstances," Tom said. "And I called it The Longer Table because I feel that there's a lot of people in society that build a taller fence, and I would rather see people build a longer table."
The Longer Table is open every Friday night at First Baptist Church of Alcoa from 6-8 p.m. People can also collect fresh food from the food pantry to stock up for the weekend.