Over the past few years, young professionals looking for ways to give back to the Memphis community have had more opportunities than ever.
While the economic revitalization of Downtown and the rising wealth of suburbia has given rise to a number of relatively new social organizations and non-profits, one organization has quietly been recruiting and involving young professionals in community service for decades.
That organization is the Phoenix Club, a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit that traces its roots in Memphis back to the 1950s. The organization has endured with one simple mission; serving disadvantaged youth in Shelby County.
In April 1962, The Phoenix Club opened the first Memphis Boys Club, and is now the primary financial supporter of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Memphis, which operates five facilities.
Last year, the club donated more than $164,000 to the Boys and Girls Clubs, and annually gives between $145,000-$175,000. Club officials estimate the group has raised about $4 million for the clubs, which support youth ages 7-17.
“We wouldn’t be here without them,” says Brad Baumgardner, CEO of Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Memphis. “The Phoenix Club has been instrumental in making sure that we have the dollars to operate, including training and educating Memphians about what the Boys and Girls Club is doing in the community.
“They are impacting lives of kids who really need it the most.”
The organization exists today much as it did when its founder, Memphis attorney John Thomason, created it, albeit considerably larger. Club membership is at its highest level ever at about 120. It caters to male professionals under the age of 35 from the legal and financial services industries. Sorry ladies, but this is a male-only organization.
“A lot of our recruitment is word of mouth,” says Phoenix Club president Todd Photopulos, an attorney at the Bulter Snow law firm. “We try to reach out to potential members when they are just getting out of school and looking to get established in the professional world.”
Annual fundraisers, often cleverly disguised as free-wheeling social events, give the new members opportunities to lead within the organization. Among the most popular events are the annual Mardi Gras and Casino Night parties, and an annual 5K run on Mud Island.
This year’s Harbortown 5K netted about $47,000. Last year, Casino Night raised about $27,000, which was good enough to snag a sponsorship from Grand Casino, Photopulos says.
