Building Together: City of Memphis Weekly Newsletter

Memphis sent this bulletin at 09/04/2026 04:15 PM CDT

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Mental health is deeply personal to me.

I grew up in a family where we talked about it. My parents made mental health a priority in their church because they understood that caring for people meant caring for the whole person. And like so many families, people very close to me have experienced mental health challenges of their own.

So I know what it is like to love someone who is struggling. I know the worry that families carry, and how hard it can be to know what to do or where to turn when someone you love needs help. Those experiences have shaped the way I think about mental health and the responsibility we have to care for one another. They have also shaped the way I think about our responsibility as a city.

Every year, tens of thousands of people in Memphis experience a mental health crisis. When that happens, I want people to know that they can ask for help and that our systems are designed to understand what kind of help they need. That is why we are adding a Fourth Option to 911.

When you call 911 in Memphis, you’ll now be asked what kind of help you need: Police. Fire. EMS. Or Mental Health Response. It is a simple but important change.

If you choose Mental Health Response, the call taker will ask additional questions to better understand what is happening and determine the appropriate response.

For every mother or father worried about a child, or a friend trying to help someone they love, you can now call 911 and immediately identify the issue as a mental health crisis. That distinction is important. Not every emergency is the same, and our response shouldn’t assume that it is.

The Fourth Option is part of a larger effort to ensure we respond to people in crisis thoughtfully and connect them with the resources they need. It is another tool for our 911 call takers, our first responders, and, most importantly, the families who are trying to navigate an incredibly difficult situation.

We don’t want people to wait until a situation becomes an emergency to ask for help.

If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health, substance use, or emotional crisis and needs someone to talk to, call 988. Trained crisis counselors are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

I care deeply about this work because I understand it personally. But I also believe it is simply part of our responsibility to one another. We have to keep building a Memphis where asking for help is not a weakness, where families know where to turn, and where the systems we build reflect the care we would want for someone we love.

That is the standard I want us to keep working toward.

Good News!

Memphis Zoo Invites the Community to Shape Its Future

Memphis Zoo is entering an exciting new chapter and wants Memphians to be part of it. After more than 120 years as a cornerstone of this community, the Zoo is refreshing its brand for the first time in over 30 years and is asking residents to weigh in. Four new design concepts have been developed and voting is open now through September 14 at memphiszoo.org. The Zoo is also looking ahead to major new developments, including a brand-new home for its African elephants and transformed habitats across the Africa exhibit. Cast your vote and help shape what comes next!

Click here to cast your vote: Memphis Zoo Invites the Community to Shape Its Future

The Metal Museum Opens Its New Home in Overton Park Tomorrow

St. Mary's Episcopal School was honored with the 2024-2025 Award of Excellence at the Tennessee Conference for Volunteerism and Service Learning, a statewide recognition for schools that demonstrate outstanding, sustained commitment to community service and civic engagement. During the 2024-2025 school year, students across the St. Mary's campus gave more than 10,000 service hours, supporting organizations serving children, families, and vulnerable populations across Memphis through tutoring, meal delivery, donation drives, and mentoring.

Click here to learn more: The Metal Museum Opens Its New Home in Overton Park Tomorrow

FathersFirst Memphis Launches Literacy Zones at Local Schools

FathersFirst Memphis is taking on low childhood literacy rates in a fresh and personal way. The nonprofit recently launched its FathersFirst Reads Literacy Zone program, establishing reading-focused zones at Hawkins Mill Elementary and Egypt Elementary to help fathers become more engaged in their children's reading lives. Only about a quarter of students in Memphis-Shelby County Schools are currently at or above grade level in reading, and FathersFirst is working to change that by building a culture where reading becomes a shared family experience.

Click here to learn more: FathersFirst Memphis Launches Literacy Zones at Local Schools

Do you have good news to share? We would love to share it! Send us a note at goodnews@memphistn.gov

Track Our Progress

The linked reports below provide evidence to support our public safety strategy and our work to ensure municipal fiscal responsibility. These dashboards provide a quick overview, with the ability to dive in deeper to neighborhoods and divisions. Both dashboards update daily.

SAFER COMMUNITIES: View the dashboard here.

FINANCE TRACKER: View the tracker here.

Our Blight Strike Team worked in the following zip codes this week: 38109, 38114, 38106, 38117

To report concerns related to property violations, potholes, and trash, click the link here or call 311 to speak to a live agent.

Want to know what's happening in Memphis? Explore these event calendars to stay in the loop on all the city has to offer!

Memphis Public Libraries

City of Memphis Meetings & Notices

Follow us on social media @citymemphis!

A strong transit system should serve the people who depend on it, and it should be good enough that more people choose to use it.

This week, MATA unveiled 12 of 56 new buses, bringing more reliable equipment to riders traveling to work, school, appointments, events, and everywhere else they want and need to go.

We have a lot of work ahead to build the transit system Memphis deserves. These 12 buses are one step toward a system that is reliable, convenient, and increasingly a real choice for how Memphians move around our city.

Click here to learn more.

In partnership and progress,

Paul A. Young