The Chapel Hill house
The first house. The long table on Franklin Street.
Chapel Hill is where the whole idea got its first address: a house a few minutes’ walk from the Pit, a host family who keep the kitchen running, and a table that fills up every Thursday with Tar Heels who were strangers in August.
Odysseus Foundation is an independent nonprofit. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “UNC,” “Carolina,” and “Tar Heels” are trademarks of the university, used only to identify the school whose students we serve.
Where
Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Dinner
Thursdays at seven o'clock
Doors
Doors open at six-thirty
Where to find us
A ten-minute walk from the Old Well and the Pit, on the quiet end of Franklin Street. Street parking fills early; most people walk or ride the P2P.
The host family
A Chapel Hill couple with two grown children and a kitchen that has fed thirty on short notice more times than they can count. They know every name by the second dinner and they notice when you have had a rough week.
Getting there
- On foot: ten minutes from the Pit, west along Franklin.
- By bus: the P2P and Chapel Hill Transit F and J routes stop within two blocks.
- By car: street parking on the side streets after 6 pm. The lot behind the house is for the host family.
Every conservative Tar Heel on campus has a seat at the table. Membership is verified simply, so the table stays genuine.
A week at Chapel Hill
Come to any of it. Most people start with Thursday and work outward.
- Thursday, 7:00 pm
Weekly dinner. Catered properly. RSVP in the app, no agenda.
- Sunday, 4:00 pm
Formation session in the study. Pillar One this term: logic and rhetoric.
- Game days
Watch parties and the occasional cookout on the porch.
- Fall and spring break
The retreat. Three days, one lodge, a ridge at sunrise.
The three things people ask
- Do I need to RSVP?
- Yes, by Wednesday noon, so the host family knows how many are coming. Your first time, the form on this site is the RSVP; we will reply with the address. After that it is one tap in the app. Bringing a friend? Put them on your RSVP so there is a plate.
- What if I do not know anyone?
- Most people did not, the first time. Someone at the door will hand you a plate and walk you to a seat. By the second dinner you will be the one walking someone new to a seat.
- Is there a cost?
- None. Dinner is free, always. Trips carry a small cost that points can cover.
Thursday, seven o'clock
Chapel Hill eats on Thursday
Tell us you are coming and we will send the address, the time, and what is on the menu.