Bigger Than Food · New Disabled South · Main Street Alliance · We Build Progress

Table Talks: Food, Power & Our Future

A 5-session community education series that starts with a full plate and ends at the Oklahoma State Capitol — built for the people carrying households, businesses, and community memory all at once.

LocationFilmmakers Ranch, Spencer, OK
Series length5 sessions + kickoff
Built toward2027 Day of Action, OK Capitol

Free to attend · Civic education, not a political party event · Open to all Oklahomans working toward a stronger neighborhood and livelihood

Three days, five sessions

The series meets three times this fall

Each day pairs a co-hosting partner with Main Street Alliance, so no single organization is carrying the table alone.

Day 1 · Sept 12

Sessions 1 & 2

Co-led by Main Street Alliance & New Disabled South

Featuring special remarks from Dom Kelly, CEO of New Disabled South.

Day 2 · Sept 26

Sessions 3 & 4

Co-led by We Build Progress & Main Street Alliance

Day 3 · Oct 10

Session 5

Co-led by Bigger Than Food & Main Street Alliance

RegistrationFree to attend
LunchCatered by Growing For Good Farm — $10
FormatNon-partisan civic education, open to all Oklahomans
Why this series exists

Food gets people in the room. Power keeps them there.

These educational huddles bridge the gap between cultural identity and political power — using food as the initial draw to move working adults, entrepreneurs, seniors, and people with disabilities from feeling outside the system to standing inside it, ready to act.

80+
Active participants equipped to influence the 2026 Legislative Session and 2027 agenda
5
Sessions, each building on the last — roots, power, skills, and readiness
Feb '27
Day of Action at the Oklahoma State Capitol — the series' pinnacle moment
Who this is built for

The sandwich generation, and everyone at their table

Ages 35–54, managing households, elders, work, and often a business on the side — frustrated, and short on time. The series speaks to every seat they're filling at once.

Entrepreneurs & Small Business Owners

Carrying the daily weight of broken supply chains, inaccessible capital, and tariff costs — with no policy advocate fighting for Main Street. Their experience makes them partners in this work, not just beneficiaries of it.

Seniors

Bringing institutional memory and social trust — the credibility that moves the whole room, and word travels fast when they show up first.

People with Disabilities

Bringing firsthand knowledge of where healthcare policy, infrastructure, and representation fail — with an explicit seat at the table, not an afterthought.

Working Families

Balancing jobs, caregiving, and community life — the group every session is ultimately built to reach and mobilize.

How it feels in the room

Safe agitation

Safety first

Start from love, not alarm

Residents in rural areas may be quietly hesitant to rock the boat. The tone opens with heart-to-heart connection and love for the community — never "burn it all down."

Then, inspire agitation

Name what's missing

Once safety is established, the series pivots to name the lack of representation directly — where legislative attention goes, and where it doesn't.

The program arc

Five sessions, one slow walk

Each gathering builds on the last — moving from roots and identity, through collective power, into practical skills and policy readiness.

Day 1 · September 12Main Street Alliance & New Disabled South
Day 2 · September 26We Build Progress & Main Street Alliance
Day 3 · October 10Bigger Than Food & Main Street Alliance
The pinnacle event

2027 Day of Action, Oklahoma State Capitol

Everything mapped, practiced, and named across five sessions gets brought directly to the people making decisions — before the critical votes are cast, while the agenda is still being formed.

Why February

The second week of February places the community at the Capitol early — while committee assignments are fresh and legislators are still forming positions. A voice heard in February carries more weight than one heard in April, after the votes are locked.

Who shows up

Every participant across all five sessions. Entrepreneurs speak to the survival issues that went unaddressed in 2026. Advocates show up for healthcare and Census integrity. Seniors bring the memory of what the community has been through.

The goal

Not simply to show up — to overwhelm the Capitol with the kind of organized, multi-voiced participation that legislators cannot ignore, and cannot forget when it's time to vote.

Tentatively scheduled — second week of February, 2027
What people leave with

Something in their hands at every session

So the 35–54 demographic never feels their time was wasted, each gathering ends with a physical takeaway.

Power Maps

Worksheets to map personal and community power — allies, obstacles, and where decisions actually get made.

Note-Taking Guides

Structured tools to document conversations with legislators and track what still needs following up.

"Circle Back" Notes

Session summaries sent to every attendee afterward — keeping momentum and building toward what's next.