Happy (early) Juneteenth and Father’s Day (hi, dad)! Today is Friday, June 17, and we’ve got an action-packed weekend ahead.

Juneteenth celebrations begin today and run through the holiday on Sunday (more on that below). Also, the Bluff City Balloon Jamboree, in its new Shelby Farms Park location, kicks off today and runs through Father’s Day.

Sample plant-based meals on Saturday at Memphis Vegan Festival (shout out to the life-changing sweet potato cake at Rich Health Vegan). Catch some aeronautical acrobatics at the MidSouth Air Show on Saturday and Sunday. Want more weekend ideas? Check out this week’s To-Do List.

THE NEED TO KNOW

Memphis in May added a Ferris wheel at Beale Street Music Festival this year due to the new Liberty Park location, but that location may be part of the reason for the lowest attendance in more than 20 years. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian file)

Location, location, location: The Memphis in May International Festival is reporting the lowest combined attendance in more than 20 years — and a record-setting financial loss — for the Beale Street Music Festival and the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest this year. Both events were held at Liberty Park due to ongoing construction at Tom Lee Park, and Memphis in May president and CEO Jim Holt believes the new location could be part of the problem (but he has a few more theories).

In late May, the Southern Baptist Convention released the names of hundreds identified on a secretly held list of clergy members accused of sexual abuse. (AP Photo/Holly Meyer file)

New findings in Bellevue sex-abuse case: New court filings show that leaders of Bellevue Baptist Church fired a paid volunteer accused of sexual abuse while publicly claiming that he had resigned. Lawyers for the abuse victim say a deposition by church officials shows that the church had adequate knowledge of James Ashley Hook’s behavior before he was arrested and charged with sexual battery by an authority figure and solicitation of a minor. 

Joe Tomek (left), the new executive director of the FedEx St. Jude Championship, and Richard Shadyac, president and CEO of ALSAC, chat during a preview event on Thursday, June 16, at TPC Southwind. Since the tournament’s partnership with St. Jude began in 1970, Memphis’ tour stop has raised $60 million for the hospital. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

Let’s par-tee: In August, the top golfers in the world (minus those on the controversial new LIV tour) will be in Memphis as the FedEx Cup playoffs get underway at TPC Southwind. At a preview event on Thursday, FedEx St. Jude Championship officials revealed that fans will get more of everything this year, including a field that’s basically doubled in size and a “good old-fashioned Memphis block party.” And speaking of the new Saudi-backed LIV tour, The Daily Memphian’s Geoff Calkins reminds us why it’s important for Memphians to support the FedEx St. Jude Championship: “LIV Golf exists — this is the actual purpose of the series — to whitewash the human rights violations of Saudi Arabia. The FedEx St. Jude Championship exists to save sick kids.” And who can argue with that?

Cops on campus: There will soon be a school resource officer on every Bartlett City Schools campus. Earlier this week, the Bartlett Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved funds for seven new Bartlett Police Department officers to provide security at the district’s six elementary school campuses. BCS already has officers working in its middle and high schools. “When the tragedy happened in Texas, it sped things up a bit,” said BCS Superintendent David Stephens.

Matt Thompson, who previously served as Memphis Zoo’s executive vice president and deputy director, will take Jim Dean’s place as president and CEO. (Submitted)

New zoo CEO: The Memphis Zoo announced on Thursday that Jim Dean will resign as president and CEO, and the zoo’s executive vice president and deputy director (and long-time zoo veteran) Matt Thompson will take on the lead role. 

MEET MEMPHIS

“I think eating disorders are skyrocketing because it’s a way to cope with external trauma and stressors — particularly complex trauma, but also the vicarious trauma a lot of health care workers experience,” said Whitney Trotter. (Patrick Lantrip/Daily Memphian)

Memphis dietitian and nurse Whitney Trotter wants people to know that eating disorders aren’t just a “thin, white woman’s disease.” “It’s challenging, especially for young Black teens in Memphis, to understand they can also have eating disorders. It doesn’t manifest the way it does in their white peers, but they’re equally as sick, and often sicker,” Trotter said. She founded Bluff City Health to offer one-on-one nutrition counseling for clients seeking to change their relationship with food while also educating health care professionals about the impact of systemic racial disparities in the diagnosis and treatment of eating disorders.

THE NICE TO KNOW

Tone will host its annual Juneteenth Family Reunion Festival, shown here in 2021, at Orange Mound Tower on Sunday. (Courtesy Tone)

Celebrating Juneteenth: Juneteenth falls on Sunday, and there are celebrations happening across the city all weekend. Tone is hosting its second annual Juneteenth Family Reunion Festival with “Crunk Ain’t Dead” rapper Duke Deuce and an “Afrofuturistic black tie” gala and riverboat after-party. The 29th Memphis Juneteenth Festival, one of the biggest such fests in the country, is planned for Health Sciences Park. The Douglass community is hosting a festival that includes a local arts showcase. And 100 local Black businesses will be featured at Cynthia Daniels & Co.’s Juneteenth Shop Black Festival at the Pipkin Building.

Developer Spence Ray has just one spot left to lease at Market Row in Thornwood, a mixed-use development in Germantown. (Abigail Warren/Daily Memphian)

Almost fully leased: If you’re looking to open a retail shop in Germantown’s Thornwood mixed-use development, you’d better act fast. The project’s Market Row is almost fully leased, as a new TCBY, Maggie Louise’s bridal boutique and a coffee shop prepare to join the mix. “I would look for all of them to open in the fall,” said developer Spence Ray.

Commissioners confirmed: Recounts in the two closest Democratic primary races for Shelby County Commission have confirmed that the original certified results were correct. Henri Brooks won in District 7 and Miska Clay-Bibbs won in District 11.

The gyro at Castle on Park will run you $7.99. (Jennifer Biggs/The Daily Memphian)

Hummus where the heart is: Castle on Park, a cafe serving Mediterranean and Greek fare, opened in 2008, and by the looks of their prices, you might feel like you’ve stepped back into that year. Owner Nada Hammoud has actually raised prices a bit since then, but you can still get a sandwich or a falafel combo for less than $10. Our own Jennifer Biggs stopped in to order a gyro for $7.99 and found the order to be large enough for two. So depending on how hungry you are, maybe this is a $4 deal. 

Tim Jamieson (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

On pitch: New Memphis Tigers baseball head coach Kerrick Jackson will bring on Tim Jamieson, the head coach at Missouri for 22 years, as pitching coach. Jackson previously served on Jamieson’s staff from 2011 to 2015. “[Jamieson] has been an integral part of my development as a coach, but more importantly as a man,” said Jackson. Meanwhile, the Tigers softball coach Natalie Poole has resigned after 11 years, and a national search for her replacement will begin immediately.

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Here’s something you might want to be prepared for going into next week. 

Have a great Juneteenth and Father’s Day weekend!

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