A Seat
at the Table
Dinner table conversations that introduce the world to children it never got to meet.
More episodes on their way.
Season One is being scheduled now. If you are a bereaved family in Minnesota or beyond and want your child's name to appear on this page, the application is open.
What you're actually watching
Each episode of A Seat at the Table is filmed at Vendella Euro Boutique & Coffee Haus -- a beautiful, welcoming space generously provided as our home venue. Sam and Stacey sit across from another family who has experienced the same kind of loss.
No scripts. No performance. No interview format. Just two families introducing the children they carry to anyone who will sit still long enough to listen.
Two families. A table. No script.
Most parents who have lost a child carry the weight of a name the world never learned to say. This series gives that name a room to sit in.
A Seat at the Table is not a grief documentary. It is not a trauma reel. It is a dinner table conversation between two families who share a loss - introducing each other to the children they carry in their hearts every single day.
Sam and Stacey anchor each episode as hosts who have also lost. They are not interviewers. They are parents who understand the particular silence that follows when you want to say your child's name and no one in the room knew them.
vendellacoffee.com
* Other accommodations can be discussed as part of your episode conversation.
Any family that has lost a child.
This series was built to be open - to any cause of loss, any background, any faith tradition. There are no requirements except the willingness to sit down and say your child's name.
Stillbirth, premature birth, illness, accident - the series does not define or categorize. Loss is loss.
We're based in Minnesota and filming in the region first - but geography is not a barrier if you want your child's story told.
Manny's Fund is faith-centered in its foundation. The series welcomes families of any belief and no belief at all.
It started with one name.
Manuel Michael Rodriguez was born on August 7, 2008 - 30 weeks, four pounds. He was held and prayed over and surrounded by family.
He only knew love.
Sam and Stacey built this series around Manny's name and what it taught them - that the people who carry a child's name need somewhere to say it out loud. A Seat at the Table exists because they know what it means to want your child heard by someone who will actually listen.
Every episode is an act of witness. Every name on this page is a life that mattered.
Your child's name deserves a screen.
The application takes about ten minutes. We ask about your family, your child, and how you're doing now. There's no wrong way to answer. If you're ready to sit down, we're ready to listen.
Apply for Your EpisodeHelp fund the series.
Each episode costs $1,800 to produce. Families never pay a thing. Sponsors are listed permanently on this page - where every episode lives. Your name alongside every family we serve.
See Sponsorship Options