The tastings will go on. Earlier this week Glenda Hastings at Napa Café hosted a virtual wine dinner, and on Saturday, DJ Naylor at Celtic Crossing continues his whiskey tasting series, this time on Zoom.

Here’s how it works: Buy your ticket for $30 by clicking here, then go to Celtic, 903 S. Cooper, on Friday between 11 a.m.-9 p.m. or on Saturday 1-6 p.m. to pick up your Scotch eggs and your whiskey; call ahead at 901-274-5151 and let them know when you’re coming and someone will bring your bag to your car.

You’ll get a sample of Dingle Single Malt Irish Whiskey Batch No. 4; Irish Whiskey Awards gold medal winner for 2019; Glenkinchie Single Malt, a lowland Scotch whisky and E.H. Taylor Jr. Straight Rye, 2020 Whiskey of the World favorite.

Shortly before 7 p.m. Saturday, you’ll get an email invitation to join the Zoom meeting, and there you are. Follow along as Naylor talks about the whiskeys and shows slides. You should be able to ask questions, though this is the first time around for the Zoom tasting and it’s subject to change. Be sure to join Zoom ahead of time. 

The Binghampton Development Corp. established a COVID-19 Response Fund on Wednesday, April 1, to help neighborhood residents in need, according to BDC director Noah Gray.

The fund’s purpose is to provide emergency assistance for Binghampton residents who are struggling to find money to pay rent, mortgages and utility bills. The BDC says 100% of all funds received will go directly to supporting residents.

“We are seeing residents struggle with loss of employment, inaccessibility to food and household goods, and a rapid decrease in options for child care, transportation and internet access,” Gray said. “We know that many economically vulnerable individuals and families in Binghampton will now increasingly struggle to make ends meet.”

If you want to donate to the COVID-19 response fund, here is a link.

You can also donate a check through the mail with “COVID-19 RESPONSE FUND” in the memo to Binghampton Development Corporation, P.O. Box 111447 Memphis, TN 38111.

Dogwood teachers, administrators and school mascot Daisy the Dolphin paraded through the school zone in cars recently as a way to be with their students.

The students missed their teachers, and the teachers missed seeing the children each day. Classes are not scheduled to resume until at least April 24.

So the teachers created a way to see their students during this time of separation and social distancing.

Students lined the sidewalks with signs, and Dogwood staff decorated their vehicles. They waved to one another as the teachers passed in their cars.

“That was something I will not forget,” parent Brian Ueleke said. “Just one of those moments that captured the positive attitude of folks in this hard time.”

Germantown Community Library has launched a program to connect youth and the elderly.

The “Dear Friend” initiative is an effort to fight the negative and lonely feelings that experts say the current isolation because of coronavirus may bring. The program will allow children up to age 18 to write letters to those 60 and older who are permanently or temporarily homebound in the suburb’s community. 

Those wishing to participate should fill out an online form. Children are asked to have parental approval before signing up for the program.

The library will confirm those wishing to participate are Germantown residents and the library will pair them. 

The Vitalant mobile blood donation unit rolled into Collierville’s Braystone Park neighborhood recently for those wanting to donate blood, and plenty answered the call.

Vitalant, formerly Lifeblood, and other blood donation organizations have canceled drives in order to limit the number of people gathering. That makes it difficult to get blood donations.

Twenty-four responded in Braystone, with about seven more who wanted to donate but the unit needed to roll on.

Starting Wednesday, April 1, hourly workers in the hospitality industry who have been terminated due to the COVID-19 crisis may apply for a one-time grant online at the Welcome to Memphis website.

These grants are funded by the Mid-South COVID-19 Regional Response Fund, hosted by the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis (CFGM).

The application will be available until 6 p.m. April 6. The week of April 6, Welcome to Memphis will start awarding one-time grants of $300 each. There are a limited number of grants available, depending on the amount of money available.

Businesses and corporations can support this effort by donating to the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis.

Eligible applicants include hourly employees of hotels, restaurants, bars, tourist attractions, convention services and tour operations in the Memphis area. Recipients will be chosen through a lottery-style system after the application deadline closes.

Applicants will need to provide their name, contact information, employer and employer contact information and these items:

• Proof of work such as a pay stub or W2
• A government issued ID
• Proof of termination.

Musicians, artists and entertainers are encouraged to go to the ArtsMemphis website. Their Artist Emergency Fund is making individual grants available and is accepting applications for those whose work is impacted by the pandemic.

Welcome to Memphis teaches hospitality employees about Memphis, offers customer service skills training, and recognizes individuals for a job well done. Learn more about Welcome to Memphis.