StoryBoard 30

“We (originally) called it Memphis Spillit Center Stage, and we curated the stories. We had people invited to come up and tell their stories, and they had ten minutes to tell their story. Sometimes you have to have an audience to understand what ‘your’ story is – it’s not a monologue, it’s a dialog where only one person is speaking, and one has to relate. Everyone has a shared moment, but it’s really about connecting...

'“Over the years, we’ve taken artists who may know each other, may have played with each other 20-30 years ago, and it’s sort of a reunion. I remember being backstage last year when Dave Bromberg and Tom Chapin – at one point they were both in the New York music scene – and they were saying ‘ya remember when we played the Village Gate?’ Or to see Richie Havens hugging Odetta … just so many stories...

“What we found was that market forces tended to favor growth within the geographic center of the city, from downtown to the eastern edge of the city along the Poplar corridor… and it left out a lot of areas of the city that otherwise would not see much activity. This was dissatisfying for everyone, and though we’re excited about growth, we want it to extend to all areas of the city, including Frayser and Raleigh and Hickory Hill. Memphis 3...

“The Heights has about ten percent of Memphis’s vacant and blighted structures. Addressing this was identified as a priority, but what was realized was that addressing one housing project at a time probably was not going to affect the kind of community development that the neighborhood wanted to see."

“‘We rise by lifting others‘ is our motto… So we took our cues from cities that had been successful in revitalizing challenging areas like this one...

“There are about 27,000 veterans in the Mid-South. And we’re reaching people finally, but truthfully, the hardest part is finding veterans who want to talk. Even after World War I, soldiers came home and didn’t talk about what they saw. Soldiers, marines, sailors… it’s something that happened to them and something that no one else can understand. But if someone can reach out to me, then I’ll call them on the phone...

“We see homeless adults all the time. They are very visible. But when you think about children, they’re in the classroom all day. The numbers of homeless kids are staggering, up to 1300-1400 in Shelby County. It’s traumatic for these kids. As a teacher, you have to ‘teach’ to that level of trauma – forget math, forget reading, you have to teach to the trauma first...

Is 2020 the year when we will see an indoor event in the Mid-South Coliseum?

The Coliseum has been empty since 2006, when “Memphis was at low civic ebb in enthusiasm,” as Marvin Stockwell said. The FedEx Forum and the Pyramid were open and in use, and the Mid-South Coliseum was seen as obsolete...

“I was 40 years old. I wasn’t the world’s oldest intern, I was the intern that never left.”

That’s Emily Trenholm, one of 2020's Mojo of Midtown Award recipients, talking about her start with the Community Development Council back in 2000, when the organization was just forming.

“Community development corporations (CDCs) are nonprofits that are engines of neighborhood revitalization,” said Emily...

“Before I ever got here, I thought a parking garage would be a great solution. And I know a lot of people in town have thought the same thing. We want to be very careful about what we do in Overton Park and with the Zoo, but there’s new technology, things become more affordable in terms of what can constructed – a lot of people are working on these solutions, Mayor Strickland’s team is working hard – and we’re hoping to get that garage built… without paving any of the Greensward...

“The grief really never leaves. You tend to put it in its proper place and carry on with the work you have to do to close the school and honor the commitment to the students. But the undercurrent of grief is always there...