Snow days in Memphis: A mix of blues, basketball and playing with man's best friend

It was a sunny Wednesday afternoon in Overton Park, but the park wasn't full of activity like it usually is on a sunny day.

We're sure that had something to do with the still-thick layer of snow blanketing the ground and the downright chilly temps.

But Genevieve and Brody Kuhar played in the snow with their Goldendoodle Maggie, who raced across the white covering after retrieving a green ball. Nearby, Scout — with a pink tag dangling from her collar — played fetch with her owners, John and Elizabeth Sumner, leaving little paw prints in the snow as she chased after the ball.

Elsewhere in the park, sledding and snowman-building brought smiles to faces partially covered by hats and scarves.

Sure, schools and many small businesses have been closed all week. Roads are still slick (especially side streets) and temps are still cold (OK — very, very cold.) But this is Memphis. There's still plenty of activity in the Bluff City during this cold snap — from blues to basketball to playing with man's best friend.

Here's a look at how some Memphis residents and businesses are dealing with this week's wintry blast.

An increased workload + a reversed workday

Campfire Collective owner Shannon Briggs said the cold weather has doubled her and her staff’s work this week. The large amount of closures this week has left the public relations and communications company scrambling a bit to make sure it has announcements up for updated hours of operations for each of its respective clients, she said.

Managing the workload there is nothing new, the double shift part is on Briggs’ family side.

“My days are sort of playing with a toddler in the morning, then spending the night behind a computer,” she said. With school and daycare closures, her workday has reversed its schedule.

In addition, several in-person meetings have been rescheduled this week, she said. However, compared to last year’s storm, this week has been much easier to navigate and handle, she said.

December 2022 saw the Mid-South, and most of the country, endure a once-in-a-generation-type winter storm that left thousands without power and water during the holiday season in Memphis.

“None of my team has lost power,” Briggs said about this week's winter weather. She added that last year due to the number of residents without electricity and the water boil advisory, there was only so much anyone could do.

Go Tigers Go!

Verlinda Johnson Henning, a lifelong Memphian, has braved the frigid temps and taken the occasional stroll around her neighborhood this week. But she has not yet gotten on the roads.

That will change Thursday. Henning, a Memphis basketball season ticket holder for more than a decade, never misses a home game — and she doesn’t plan on starting now. One way or another, Henning (who became a "Jeopardy!" champion in 2021 and made another appearance on the long-running game show in 2023) will be at FedExForum for the 6 p.m. tip-off against South Florida.

“I’m going to carpool with another fan and her hubby,” she said. “If they back out, I’ll white-knuckle it down there very slowly and surely.”

It won’t be the first time Henning hasn’t allowed inclement weather to keep her from cheering on her beloved Tigers. On Jan. 16, 2018, snow fell on Memphis and the Tigers hosted UConn that night.

“I drove Downtown, and they moved us all to the lower bowl,” she said. “We destroyed them that night. I was sitting behind the UConn bench. They were sick of me before halftime.”

No stopping the blues on Beale Street

The weather hasn’t seemed to put a damper on the annual International Blues Challenge, which kicked off officially on Wednesday night at various clubs on Beale Street.

“Everything is going great. We're on schedule, on time and ready to have an amazing competition,” said Joe Whitmer with the Memphis-based Blues Foundation, which stages the event. “Travel certainly was dicey. Some folks had delays or other issues. But at this point, almost all of the acts have made it, our sound guys are here and we’re raring to go.”

The International Blues Challenge, which is marking its 39th year on Beale, has faced numerous challenges in its four-decade history. “Every year we have a challenge, and this year it happens to be the weather," Whitmer said. "But it doesn’t seem to affect our fan base. I mean, blues people are a different breed of fan. They’ve determined — they've made their plans and they’re coming to Memphis and they want to hear some music.”

A 'more intimate' dining experience at Tamboli's Pasta & Pizza

Tamboli’s Pasta & Pizza on Madison has remained open throughout the recent stretch of wintry weather.

Owner Miles Tamboli said they tend not to close unless they do not have utilities running. Making sure all staff members who can make it into work get a paycheck for the week is important, he said.

“As a business that launched right before COVID started, it's always been pretty important to me to make sure that folks are getting paid because that's what they're working for,” Tamboli said.

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While there have been fewer customers than normal this week, Tamboli said those who have come in have been great.

“We've had a lot of fun with our guests who have come. ... They recognize that we're not at full capacity. It may take a little bit longer for food to come out, but we're gonna get it right,” he said. “… Generally, it's just like more intimate for the people who do come in. So it's definitely not, you know, a big moneymaker of a week.”

'Come enjoy a movie and free heat' (when the ice thaws)

While many businesses shut down due to the snow, Memphis-area movie theaters mostly remained open — until Thursday, when the freezing rain that followed the weekend snowstorm created hazardous road conditions that perhaps were more discouraging for staff than for patrons.

“We’re open 365 days a year unless we really can’t be,” said David Tashie, president and chief operating officer of Malco Theatres Inc., which operates 11 Memphis-area multiplexes, plus the Summer Drive-In (only open Fridays through Sundays during the winter).

“The problem is just getting people to work,” said David’s father, longtime Malco executive Jimmy Tashie. “The side streets are terrible."

Until Thursday, some theaters, such as the Paradiso in East Memphis, had remained open throughout the days of snow and single-digit temperatures. Crowds had been relatively sparse, but David Tashie said that when schools are closed, family-friendly movies such as the animated “Migration” and Pixar’s “Soul” can be a draw for parents and kids with cabin fever. But Thursday morning, with a drizzly rain adding a glaze of ice to already hazardous streets, Malco announced that theaters "in the Greater Memphis Area, including Desoto, Olive Branch, Corinth, & both Oxford locations," would close for the day due to "extreme weather."

Theaters were scheduled to reopen Friday. “I think at some point people want to get out of the house when they’ve been snowbound," Jimmy Tashie said. "We say, ‘Don’t waste your heat at home, come enjoy a movie and free heat.’”

'If we have power, we’ll open'

Throughout Collierville, very few retail shops opened during normal hours on Tuesday. The auto-repair shops and small retailers were closed in the morning, while larger places, including Kroger and Walgreens, were open.

A few local shops braved the cold snap including Carrington Oaks Coffeehouse & Floral on Winchester Road in Collierville, which opened at its usual 7 a.m.

“If we have power, we’ll open,” Carrington Oaks Coffeehouse manager Kenya Clark said. “Much of the customer base is loyal and faithful, and we wanted to be open for them.”

Congregation Coffee offers 'a place to go'

Newly opened Congregation Coffee in Germantown remained open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday for reasons similar to those of Carrington Oaks Coffeehouse. Owner Kenneth Schweighofer said he wanted to remain open to provide an option for anyone looking for a place to go.

On Monday, he said, he had two families from Collierville visit the shop because their power was out and they needed a place to work.

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“We did not publicize that we were open because I did not want to encourage people to drive on the roads,” Schweighofer said. “But we wanted to offer a place to go, and we’re new and still establishing a sense of community.”

Because of road conditions, he was the only member of the Congregation Coffee team able to make it into the shop by opening time Tuesday morning.

Some Memphis Zoo animals 'having the time of their lives'

Chief Zoological Officer Courtney Janney said there are a couple major challenges the Memphis Zoo faces to make it through this kind of weather, the most vital being to ensure that the animals’ caretakers can reach them.

“The first is getting staff to and from the zoo safely. Our animals require care 365 days a year — even when there's snow on the ground or it's a holiday," Janney said. "I'm so proud of the people that show up no matter what to care for the animals and keep our facilities functional.”

But getting staff to the zoo wouldn’t mean much if the multiple HVAC systems the zoo relies on to function were to fail.

“We struggle with some of our aging infrastructure to keep the dozens of boilers, air handlers and HVAC systems up to the challenge this weather presents," Janney said. "While many of our animals are cold tolerant, not everyone is — and it's also crucial we keep the buildings warm enough to avoid damage to pipes or other systems.”

Despite difficulties the staff has to confront, some of the zoo’s residents have been enjoying the snow.

“Our polar bears, wolf pups and snow leopards have been having the time of their lives," Janney said. "Some animals you wouldn't expect — like our male rhino — has a pretty severe case of cabin fever in the barn and has enjoying being out romping in the snow today. We keep a close eye on those that are out and ensure everyone has access to come in overnight to be warm.”

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Winter weather Memphis: How residents, businesses are coping