Shepherd’s Table is one of Montgomery County’s most iconic nonprofits, providing free meals to those in need for more than 40 years.
In early June, the organization in downtown Silver Spring unveiled a new logo as part of a larger brand transformation, according to its website.
The logo changed from the outline of three green figures huddled together to form a circle above the words, “Shepherd’s Table,” to a plate with a shepherd’s staff and a fork crossing each other and the motto, “Shepherd’s Table Together Meeting Needs. Changing Lives.”
Over the years the nonprofit has expanded from providing meals to also offering services including an eye clinic that offers vision testing, a clothing closet, and a culinary skills training program focused on professional training and certification.
We spoke with Executive Director Manny Hidalgo, 55, of Silver Spring about the new logo, the rising need in the county and more.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
What inspired the new logo and brand transformation for Shepherd’s Table?
I had a real concern with the logo I inherited when I started this job in 2019. I just didn’t feel it conveyed the essence of what we do and the essence of who we are. Unfortunately, some people, when they would see that logo, especially from afar, they would think it looked like a hazard symbol.
The original logo had a shepherd’s staff, right? That was the symbol, and I wanted to bring back that shepherd. To me, the combination of the shepherd staff with the fork and the plate symbolizes that, yes, we serve meals, but we couple all of our meals with social services. You can come have a meal, and while you’re having that meal, if you’re new to us, we’re going to sit down with you. We’re going to get to know your name. We’re going to find out, you know, what do you need besides a meal?
The shepherd staff is the social service aspect of the work and the guiding, right? Because, as a shepherd, your role is not just to watch over the sheep, it’s to protect the sheep from harm. It’s to guide the sheep when it’s time, to move to a different pasture. So, sort of that willingness to serve and guide and protect, coupled with the nutrition that the plate and the fork symbolize.
While Shepherd’s Table is well known for its meal services, not as many people may be aware of the social services available. How do those fit into the nonprofit’s overall mission?
When you first walk into our facility the first thing you see is our resource window. The social services team works out of the resource window, they have set hours before and after every meal. There you can pick up your mail. You could find out about assistance with prescription medication. You could sign up to go upstairs and take a shower and do your laundry. You could find out about resident facilities if you need to spend the night at a shelter, either at Progress Place [in Silver Spring], or any of the other many shelters in the county or in D.C. or Prince George’s [County]. You can get a bag of toiletries, and you can even ask for underwear, socks, shampoo, soap — the things you and I take for granted.
We repurpose so much at Shepherd’s Table. We get $1.5 million of in-kind assistance through donations, volunteer labor, and the facility, which is owned by the county, that we get for $1 a year.
In recent months, many federal workers in Montgomery County have been laid off. Have you noticed a difference in those who are seeking services at Shepherd’s Table?
Most definitely. Since immigrants and refugees began getting shipped up from Texas and other border states, we had a huge increase in the number of people that were coming from the Americas to get food and to get access to the other resources.
The federal workers who are all being laid off, they’re showing up as volunteers who are [former employees of] USAID, Peace Corps, NIH and you name it. All the people that were attacked by DOGE [Department of Government Efficiency], they’re showing up and volunteering and just doing incredible work. And the thing is that if you want to find work, you got to be busy.
There are so many great federal workers in this town, and they’re not the type to ever sit around and mope and say, ‘Woe is me.’ They’re going to continue to serve, and in that spirit of service, hopefully find permanent new jobs.
Homelessness is up 32% in Montgomery County in 2025. Has it been difficult to meet the demand at Shepherd’s Table?
It’s been extremely hard.
We had a huge upsurge in individual donations during the pandemic. Then people were getting stimulus checks from the first Trump administration, then the Biden administration. A lot of folks were like, ‘I actually, don’t really need this.’ And they were just signing the checks over to us, so we had over $1.5 million surplus during the pandemic in individual donations.
The ability of individual donors to give to that degree petered out as we expected it would, right? But Montgomery County government hasn’t changed their funding model for Shepherd’s Table in over a decade, and they’re not reimbursing us based on the number of meals that we provide.
I do think that’s a travesty and it needs to change.
What’s the No. 1 message you’d like to deliver to the community about Shepherd’s Table in 2025?
That we need your help. We need your support. We need you to come in and help us serve a meal. And, more importantly, help us connect those who are the most impoverished and vulnerable with folks who can bring joy, hope, and [an] embrace to their lives. We’re really big on breaking bread together, so I want people to know that also, when they come and volunteer, there’s a delicious meal waiting for them as well.
Max Schaeffer is a Bethesda Today summer intern.
