About The Story Table

Two seats. Two stories. One connection.

The Story Table began with a friendship.

For years, Rodney Fickas and Dwayne James have worked side by side at Soulcraft, a community woodshop founded in Ferguson, Missouri. Along the way, they've made plenty of things together. But perhaps more importantly, they've shared stories.

Stories about their lives, their families, their experiences, their struggles, and the things they've learned along the way.

Some conversations brought laughter. Others went a little deeper. And somewhere between the sawdust, the woodworking, and the conversations, a meaningful friendship grew.

That friendship became the inspiration for The Story Table.

The Art of Connection

The idea was simple.

You have a story. I have a story. And when we share those stories with one another, they become part of something bigger.

Rodney and Dwayne wanted to create something that might encourage others to experience the same kind of connection they had found through their friendship.

Not just another piece of furniture, but a work of art with a purpose.

A table designed for two people to sit across from one another, choose a question, share a little of their lives, and listen.

The handcrafted table incorporates intricate Kumiko-inspired woodworking patterns, representing the many experiences that make up our lives. Some are beautiful. Some are difficult. Some leave us feeling a little broken.

But when those individual pieces come together, they can create something remarkable.

Much like our stories.

Made at Soulcraft

The Story Table was created at Soulcraft, a community woodshop in Ferguson, Missouri, built around a simple belief:

We make things good.

At Soulcraft, making has always been about more than the things that come out of the shop. It's about the people who come together, the skills they share, the relationships they build, and the sense of belonging that grows along the way.

The Story Table is an expression of that philosophy.

It represents what can happen when people work alongside one another, share their experiences, and discover that they have more in common than they might have imagined.

In many ways, the friendship between Rodney and Dwayne is the first story this table has to tell.

Made Possible Through Support for the Arts

The original Story Table was made possible through an Artist Support Grant from the St. Louis Regional Arts Commission.

That support helped Rodney and Dwayne turn an artistic vision into a tangible work of socially engaged art—one intended not simply to be admired, but to be experienced.

We're grateful to the St. Louis Regional Arts Commission for supporting the creation of the first Story Table and helping make this work possible.

One Table Is Just the Beginning

Our hope is that The Story Table won't remain a single work of art in a single gathering place.

We envision Story Tables in coffee shops, breweries, libraries, community centers, and other third spaces where people naturally gather.

Places where old friends might discover something new about each other.

Where strangers might become friends.

Where people with different backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences might find a little common ground.

Where someone who needs to be heard might find someone willing to listen.

We know a table alone can't change the world.

But we believe the conversations that happen around one just might change someone's world.

That's why we're working to make more Story Tables available to public gathering spaces, including places that may need financial support to make one possible.

The Story Isn't Finished

The Story Table is a work of art that isn't truly complete when the woodworking is finished.

It's completed, again and again, by the people who sit at it.

Every conversation adds something. Every shared memory, every moment of understanding, every unexpected connection becomes part of its continuing story.

Rodney and Dwayne created the first table.

What happens next belongs to everyone who takes a seat.