Goodwill and TABLE Forge Alliance to Fight Child Hunger in North Carolina

DURHAM, NC – May 12, 2026 – In a significant move to combat child food insecurity, Goodwill Industries of Eastern North Carolina (GIENC®) and the non-profit TABLE have announced a strategic partnership set to reshape food assistance for hundreds of families in Orange County. The collaboration centers on expanding Chefs@Home, TABLE's innovative program that delivers meal kits and nutrition education to school-age children, by leveraging Goodwill's extensive operational and financial resources.

Under the new agreement, GIENC will become the exclusive sponsor of the Chefs@Home program for the next year, providing full funding and absorbing key operational duties. This allows TABLE to focus on its core mission of education and family engagement while dramatically increasing the program's capacity. The partnership aims to not only feed children but to create a sustainable and scalable model for strengthening regional food systems and improving last-mile delivery to underserved communities.

A Strategic Alliance to Tackle a Growing Need

The partnership represents a powerful synergy between two organizations with distinct but complementary strengths. TABLE, founded in 2008, has earned a stellar reputation for its grassroots efforts, growing from serving just 12 children to providing weekly food for over 1,100 children in Orange County. However, its success created logistical hurdles, including a growing waiting list for the popular Chefs@Home program due to space and resource constraints.

This is where GIENC steps in. The organization will utilize its new Opportunity Campus in Durham to manage food sourcing, volunteer coordination, and the assembly of the monthly food kits. This integration into GIENC's formidable infrastructure is designed to immediately alleviate the bottlenecks that had limited TABLE's expansion.

"This partnership allows us to build on a proven model and expand its impact," said Christopher Hash, GIENC president & CEO, in the announcement. "By fully supporting Chefs@Home and integrating it into our operational infrastructure, we are advancing a more coordinated approach to food access across eastern North Carolina."

The collaboration will initially support the continued delivery of kits to approximately 550 households. For TABLE, the support is transformative.

"This collaboration strengthens our ability to serve children and families consistently and effectively," noted Ashton Tippins, TABLE executive director. "With Goodwill's support, we can focus on delivering high-quality nutrition education and reaching more households in need."

More Than a Meal: The Chefs@Home Model

The Chefs@Home program is about more than just providing calories; it's designed to empower families and foster a love for healthy food. Each monthly kit is thoughtfully curated to include fresh, nutritious ingredients and step-by-step recipes that children can help prepare. The goal is to make cooking an accessible, engaging family activity.

Beyond the food itself, the kits serve as a vehicle for holistic learning. They include nutrition education materials and creative food-based STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) activities. These activities connect real-world applications of academic concepts to ingredients and nutrition. To further support families, each kit links to instructional videos that reinforce meal preparation techniques and nutrition concepts, ensuring a multi-faceted learning experience at home.

Feedback from families already participating in the program underscores its impact. Prior to this expansion, 97% of participating families reported that their children eat more fruits and vegetables as a result of TABLE's programs. Many parents have praised Chefs@Home for creating what one called "new family time," turning the kitchen into a space for connection and collaborative learning.

Beyond the Thrift Store: Goodwill's Expanding Mission

This partnership is a cornerstone of GIENC's emerging 'Goodwill Feeds' initiative, a strategic expansion of the organization's mission beyond its well-known workforce development and retail operations. For over 62 years, GIENC has focused on transforming lives through employment and education. Now, it is applying its considerable logistical prowess and community trust to directly address the critical issue of food insecurity, which affects 1 in 7 people in its service area.

This isn't GIENC's first foray into hunger relief. In recent years, the organization has distributed tens of thousands of pounds of food, provided over $130,000 in food vouchers through community partners, and dedicated proceeds from its retail store "Round Up" program to food insecurity initiatives. Later this year, it plans to open the Aurora Community Cupboard, a "pay-what-you-can" food market in a USDA-designated food desert in Beaufort County.

The Chefs@Home partnership, however, marks a deeper, more integrated operational commitment. By taking on the assembly and logistics, GIENC is embedding food access directly into its core functions, signaling a long-term strategic priority.

Building a Scalable Blueprint for Food Access

The collaboration between GIENC and TABLE is being closely watched as a potential blueprint for how large non-profits can partner with smaller, specialized organizations to amplify impact. By combining GIENC's procurement power and its 51-county distribution network with TABLE's proven, high-touch program model, the partnership creates a framework that is both effective and highly scalable.

Central to this scalability is GIENC's new Opportunity Campus in Durham, which will now serve as the logistical hub for Chefs@Home. This modern facility provides the physical space and operational capacity that TABLE previously lacked, enabling the program to grow without being constrained by its former physical footprint.

While GIENC has committed to a full year of funding, the partnership is built for long-term sustainability. GIENC's funding model, which funnels proceeds from its retail operations into community programs, provides a stable financial backbone. This is complemented by TABLE's demonstrated success in securing grants and community donations. Together, they form a robust financial foundation intended to ensure the program can thrive and potentially expand to other communities in eastern North Carolina in the future. For the 550 families in Orange County, this means the joy and nutrition delivered to their doorstep each month is now more secure than ever.