At the center of Denver's Auraria Campus is the site where thousands will sit for lunch at what's considered the longest table in the U.S.

Prep for an event of this magnitude is well underway.

"We'll be cooking 1,300 pounds of chicken, which is unbelievable, said Tim Jones, executive director of Longer Tables. "We have Colorado Party Rentals, who, somehow -- I have no idea -- sourced 660 tables and 5,280 chairs."

Jones has been connecting people by hosting meals at extra-long tables for a decade. 

"We realized, gosh, there's a lot of lonely people in our world, and isolation is this real thing," Jones said. "The table is this magical, beautiful place in our world, that no matter who you are or where you grow up or what the color of your skin is, the table is home."

The success of the events sparked an idea: a mile-long table in the Mile High City.

"Come on, you just got to do that, right?" Jones said. "That is amazing, and we want to be the city to do it."

And as for the meals on Saturday, chef Austin Cueto of Serendipity Catering is in charge of the menu. He says the meal is inspired by the Colorado region and Native American influence.

"I've done very big events, but this has its own uniqueness," said Cueto.

As of Thursday, there are about 1,500 seats available for the event, but for Jones, it'll be a meaningful event regardless.

"A lot of people ask me, 'why set a mile-long table?'" Jones said. "'That's a lot of work, that's a lot of expense, and are people really going to connect?' Absolutely, they will connect. But the reason we're setting this table is not to break records. We're in a moment in our world that is really difficult, and we all know it."

You can buy tickets at Longer Tables'  for $5.28 or show up on Saturday to snag a seat.