More than 1,000 needy families and individuals received all the ingredients necessary for a home-cooked meal, including a turkey, stuffing mix, cranberry sauce, cake mix, black-eyed peas, green beans, and macaroni and cheese, among other items.

“For many of us, this is the most joyous time of the year. But for those who are alone or suffering illness or economic hardship, the holidays can be devastating,” said Mayor Wharton. “Giving the comfort of a holiday meal is a small thing, but it can make such a difference in people’s lives.”  

Thanks to the 100 volunteers from the Memphis Ambassadors program who helped out.

Thanks to all our generous sponsors who made this possible, including Tri-State Bank, Sarah Lee, Walmart, the Rose Family Foundation, Pepsi Cola of Memphis, the American Snuff Company, Miller Coors, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, Memphis Light Gas & Water, MATA, NEXTSTEP, Memphis City Schools, the Kroger Company, Kellogg’s, International Paper, FedEx, Con Agra, and Bud Davis Cadillac.

 The Memphis Library Foundation recently received a $314,000 grant from the Plough Foundation for a new custom-designed JobLINC bus. The bus will bring computers, printers, internet access, and job resource materials to community centers, library branches, grocery stores, and other public areas throughout the community.

After 20 years on the road, the old JobLINC bus was retired in 2010.

“Most employers now require people to fill applications out online. For so many in our community – too many in our community – their lack of computer access prevents them from finding employment,” says Mayor A C Wharton, Jr. “As we work to grow prosperity in all of our neighborhoods, the JobLINC bus will bring the resources needed to find a job directly into our communities.”

  The bus is expected to serve 12,000 customers each year. On-board staff will provide one-on-one assistance with job searches, training opportunities, resume preparation, and online applications.

 “JobLINC has been recognized by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as a model for targeted employment outreach,” says Library Director Keenon McCloy. “We are extremely grateful to the Plough Foundation for supporting this important project. The support services that the library is able to provide through JobLINC are truly essential in these difficult economic times.”

 The previous JobLINC bus served area citizens for 20 years before being retired in 2010. The new bus will include green features, such as solar panels and LED lighting, and will be ADA compliant.

So do the pets living at Memphis Animal Services.

A MAS volunteer introduces a citizen to a potential pet in one of the facility's "get acquainted" rooms.

MAS’ popular Yappy Hour event continues tomorrow night with “Home for the Holidays.” Between 4 and 7 p.m., adoption fees for the facility’s animals will be discounted to $40 and  will include shots, sterilization, and microchipping.

At last week’s grand opening of the new facility, located at 2350 Appling City Cove, 32 animals found new forever homes. Thanks to everyone who attended and helped make the grand opening such a success.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton is expected to propose a one-time 1.5 percent salary restoration for city employees during tomorrow’s City Council meeting. The move, which would mean a minimum of $600 for most employees, comes after the city found a surplus of $5.5 million after closing out the 2011 fiscal year.

“We have our challenges, but when you look at Detroit where employees are getting hit with a 10 percent cut or Chicago where they are cutting holidays, we are working through them,” Mayor Wharton said.

The surplus originated from efficiencies in city government, such as hiring and spending freezes.

If approved by the City Council, employees would see the one-time restoration on their December 22nd paychecks.

Mayor Wharton acknowledged that some may think the money should be kept in surplus or put toward the city’s debt service, but he made a promise to employees to restore their salaries when the city was able.  

The Mayor said this proposal was the first step in fulfilling that promise.

“We’ve been reviewing our processing, and our two major focus areas when it comes to 311 are, externally, customer service, and internally, accountability,” Wharton said.

Wharton hopes the system, to be housed at the main library, will give citizens an easy, one-stop shop to call for city services. Although residents can currently call the Mayor’s Citizen Service Center at 576-6500, residents also often call their council people, the city divisions, and the mayor’s office to log complaints.

With all the service calls going to a single 311 system, the city has the opportunity to track its data more closely. For instance, the system would allow city officials to see if there were certain areas where potholes happen more frequently and then make future decisions about road construction accordingly.

The city is expected to have all phases of the 311 system completed within the next two years.

“The war on poverty is the crusade for jobs,” said Mayor Wharton. “It’s not enough to eliminate poverty; we have to grow into prosperity.”

The mayor talked about the innovative measures already begun — the Family Rewards program, the Innovation Delivery Team, and the Bank On initiative — and the importance of having the business community on board to help people move out of poverty.

Editorial board members posited the idea of poverty as a commodity in Memphis, with both business enterprises and social services existing because of the city’s demographics.

“Capital is going to flow where it gets the best return. That’s why we need to focus on prosperity instead of poverty,” the Mayor said. 

In addition to prosperity, the Mayor said he would be focused on more efficient government, including the creation of a 311 system and a realignment of certain city divisions.

“We’ve got to put our house in order,” he said. “Companies in the private sector have been doing things for years we thought we were immune from, and we’re not.”

He also mentioned a more concentrated focus on youth, from cradle to college and beyond, and neighborhood improvement, including a continued fight against blight.

Today, we are pleased to post job descriptions for seven positions on the team for which we are now hiring.  Please click the links below for a more detailed job description for each:

• Project Managers (2)
• Junior Project Managers (2)
• Performance Management Lead
• Development & Communications Lead
• Team Manager

The full job descriptions contain all the information about the exact duties and responsibilities of each position, as well as the qualifications we are looking for.  Suffice to say, we are looking for bold, visionary urban leaders who excited about the prospect of working in a collaborative, innovative environment to generate the new solutions that will help Memphis – and all American cities – advance and prosper.

Salaries for each position will be competitive and commensurate with experience.  A full benefits package will be offered for each.  Salaries and benefits will be paid from the Bloomberg Philanthropies; no City of Memphis tax-payer dollars or general funds will be used.

Application letters and resumes must be received by November 28^th and may be mailed to
Mayor’s Innovation Delivery Team
c/o Memphis City Hall
Attn: Kerry Hayes
125 North Main Street, 7^th Floor
Memphis, TN  38103

or emailed to
Kerry.Hayes@MemphisTN.gov
(please put “Innovation Delivery Team” and the relevant position in the subject line)

Thank you for your interest!

“There were several reasons Electrolux chose to locate in Memphis,” Troung said. “The City of Memphis is in close proximity to our Springfield plant and the new R&D center we are creating there. Memphis has a large pool of human capital … and there was a strong commitment from both the public and private sector.”

Representatives from the city, county, state, as well as the Greater Memphis Chamber, the TVA, and the Delta Regional Authority, praised the project.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton joked that he used his entire speaking time recognizing and welcoming dignitaries from the Memphis City Council, the Shelby County Commission, and Tennessee state government.

“This really is a long list. Usually, I just say there are two here, we recognize them, and we get to move on. This really signifies that this is a new day,” Wharton said. “We’re not merely breaking ground. We’re giving birth to a new spirit, a spirit that says to dream big and that there are no limits to what Memphis and Big Shelby can do.”

To see more from the ceremonial groundbreaking, click below.

Last week, Memphis Animal Services and Friends of Memphis Animal Services held their first “yappy hour” with animals available for adoption for $10. The turnout was amazing and the results were even better.

During what was dubbed “Black Tie Yappy Hour,” all black and white cats and dogs were $10. The city’s regular adoption fee is $75.

37 animals were adopted to forever homes during the event, and they weren’t all black or white. Some were brown, like this little guy.

Thanks to everyone who came out last week, and thanks to Memphis Pizza Cafe for providing us with refreshments.

Next week’s “Yappy Hour” is Thursday, September 29th from 4 to 7 p.m.  The theme is “Raining Cats and Dogs,” and all cats or dog older than 6 months will be only $10.

We know everyone loves puppies and kitties, but older animals need good homes, too.

Under the program, which is a partnership between the city, the Women’s Foundation for a Greater Memphis, Seedco, and the NYC Center for Economic Opportunity, low-income families can get cash incentives for achieving milestones such as perfect attendance at school or passing the GED.

“When we say we are a City of Choice, we mean a City of Choice for everybody,” said Mayor Wharton. “One in four Memphians live below the poverty line … one in five families live on less than $20,000 a year. There’s no way in the world we can deem those numbers acceptable.”

The program focuses on achievements in three areas – health, education, and employment — and participating families will be eligible to receive as much as $2,000 to $3,000 for completing a range of activities.

Family Rewards is one of five programs being replicated in cities across the country by the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City with the support of the federal Social Innovation Fund, a new public-private partnership designed to expand effective anti-poverty programs.

“In New York, we’ve learned what works to help low-income residents in our city,” said Allegra Blackburn-Dwyer with the NYC Center for Economic Opportunity. “To enact real change, we need to know if what works well in our city will work in Memphis, San Antonio, Cleveland, and across the country.”

Family Rewards in Memphis is a $11.53 million initiative with support from the Social Innovation Fund, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Open Society Foundations, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The City of Memphis has pledged $1.9 million, and the Women’s Foundation of Greater Memphis will lead the effort to raise the remaining balance.

Recruitment and sign-up of pre-selected families began this week; families could begin to expect receiving awards by the winter holidays.

“Some say ‘you’re crazy; you won’t end poverty.’ We know we won’t end poverty if we never start,” said Mayor Wharton. “We think it’s imperative that we use every possible method to end poverty.”