The origins of Black History Month date back to 1915, and since 1976, every U.S. president has designated the month of February as a celebration of achievements by Black Americans.
We also take this month to specifically recognize Black Americans’ contributions to our history.
Today, we are saluting 80+ Black-owned Chattanooga businesses. Cheers to all you do to elevate our local community + economy. 🙏
Let us know if we missed your favorite local Black-owned business.
🍴Restaurants •Big Jeff’s BBQ | 4272 Bonny Oaks Dr. | Big Jeff’s BBQ is run by Jeff Bowens Sr. and Jeff Bowens Jr. featuring their signature smoked ribs + pulled pork and chicken that is served with fresh sides daily. • Davis Wayne’s | 9454 Bradmore Ln., Ooltewah | With Davis Wayne’s soul food + cocktail selection, you’re sure to enjoy your meal. Try the jerk pork tenderloin or oven-roasted chicken.
Jussa 2 Chics serves up dishes like this colorful kale wrap. | NOOGAtoday
📱Catering/online ordering • Jussa 2 Chics | Online ordering | Jussa 2 Chics offers healthy food options and are on a mission for “healthy living, laughing hard, and eating great food.” •Not Your Mama’s Greens | Catering + online ordering | Order “Pans for the Fam” or one of their “Hot and Ready Plates.” They also offer classes + catering.
🍩 Desserts • Cake Mommy Sweet Treats | Online | Order cheesecakes, pound cakes, + more. •Chattanooga Bread Puddings | Online | With over 20 flavors of pound cakes, you’re sure to find one that you love at this dessert shop.
🛍️ Retail • Awoken CHA | Online | Custom T-shirt, sweatshirt, and apparel store with hundreds of vinyl colors to choose from. • The Floral Gallery| 3467 Wilcox Ave., Ste 103-A | The Floral Gallery’s floral + edible arrangements are hand-designed for your occasion.
🤝 Services • Alter Ego Salon & Spa | 5323 Brainerd Rd. | This salon and spa offers makeup, hair, and nail services. • Bonner Consulting Services | 1089 Bailey Ave. | Bonner provides tax preparation + consulting services and is an authorized IRS e-file provider.
🎨 Arts • Kimberly Hurley “Kimmie J Soul” | Kimmie J. has opened for the musical group The Bar-Kays + Eric Roberson, played the role of Deloris Van Cartier in “Sister Act,” and currently performs all around Chattanooga venues. • Charlie Newton | This UTC grad is a painter who founded Chattanooga’s free art school for urban youth, SPLASH, with his wife, Iantha. • Caleb Golson “CalebThePoet” | This local poet seeks to be “a voice for the voiceless.” • Kris Rochelle-Hacker | Kris loves capturing moments and feelings in time. She started her business six years ago and can shoot anything from weddings to graduation photos and business branding.
Development ○ Downtown Chattanooga’s Highway 27 project is “substantially complete,” according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation’s spokesperson. The project still contains a few final items to finish, including final paving on E. MLK Blvd., project cleanup, and pavement markings. After the highway project is completed, a new landscape project called Gateway to Chattanooga —which will bring plants and landscaping into open spaces in downtown interchanges — will begin. 🛣️ (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
Biz ○ Volkswagen of America still plans to assemble their new electric SUV in 2022 despite the International Trade Commission’s ruling against a battery supplier. Volkswagen is constructing an $800 million expansion in Chattanooga where the SUV will be assembled. They plan to hire about 1,000 new workers once the expansion is completed. 🚗 (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
Announced ○ On Feb. 12, the Chattanooga Lookouts announced that they have officially accepted the Cincinnati Reds invitation to continue as the Reds’ Double-A affiliate. The player development license will begin in the 2021 season and run through the 2030 season. ⚾
State ○ A bill that would allow Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee to override decisions made by school leaders has cleared the Senate Education Committee. The bill is now headed to the Senate floor. If the bill passes both the Senate and the House, it will then go to the governor’s office for his signature. (Fox Chattanooga)
Coronavirus ○ The launch of a new federal government program will give the state of Tennessee access to more COVID-19 vaccinations. The vaccinations will be provided for free under the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, a state + federal partnership that plans to help underserved communities. Over 120 Walmart pharmacy locations will be participating. To learn more about individual county plans, visit here. (WRCB) ○ Random COVID-19 testing for staff and students at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga began this week to detect infected individuals. In an attempt to find people who are unknowingly infected, the random testing is based on recommendations from the CDC + the American College Health Association. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
Correction ○ One of the events on the PlanAhead scheduled for this weekend, the Chattanooga RV & Camping Show, is not actually happening until 2022 (wishful thinking on our part – we’re ready for this pandemic to be over). We’ve since deleted the event on our PlanAhead guide to reflect this correction. 🚫
WaterCooler ○ From Feb. 18 to Feb. 20, the Chattanooga Convention Center will be the host of the Individual State Wrestling Championship. A-AA Individuals will participate on Feb.18, DII Girls Individuals on Feb.19, and AAA Individuals on Feb. 20. To view the schedule and to find more information visit the TSSAA Sports website here. Credentials will not be mailed. Email Matthew Gillespie to obtain more information about credentials. 🤼
Ranked ○ ICYMI,Zillowrecently named Chattanooga the #1 Metro for Remote Work, thanks largely in part to our ample bandwidth and lightning-fast Internet. 💻 Ⓟ
Click the button below for local resources regarding the coronavirus.
Cornerstones Inc. is a local nonprofit historic preservation organization that preserves the “architectural heritage and urban fabric” of our city, and their Instagram page has a wealth of information about local buildings.
In this photo, we see where Memo’s Grill is located on Martin Luther King Boulevard.
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Holiday ○ Romance at Ruby | Mon., Feb. 15 | Ruby Falls, 1720 South Scenic Highway | 9:15 p.m. | $74.95 per couple | Celebrate Valentine’s Day at Chattanooga’s Ruby Falls with your significant other. This event includes a special-edition Lantern Tour, keepsake photo + gift. Advanced tickets purchased online required. 💕
TryThis ○ The Office Team Trivia | Mon., Feb. 15 | 7-9 p.m. | Old Chicago, 2006 Hamilton Place Blvd. | Free | You may not be able to watch “The Office” on Netflix these days, but you can still show off your office knowledge at this free trivia night + possibly win a gift card.
PlanAhead ○ Growing an Herb Garden | Tues., Feb. 16 | 6:00 p.m. | Virtual | $20 | Women Repair Zone brings us a fun and intuitive way to grow an herb garden. Instructor Katie Bishop will show us how to make gardening easier via Zoom. . 🌿 ○ Chunky Knit Blankets + Brews | Tues., Feb. 16 | 6-9:00 p.m. | Wanderlinger Brewing Co., 1208 King St. | $85 | Create your own chunky knit blanket while enjoying brews from Wanderlinger. ○ African American Film Series | Tues., Feb. 16-Thurs., Feb. 18 | Various times | Virtual | Free | View one (or all) of the seven selected films streaming on Hulu, Netflix, or PBS + join the film discussions via Zoom. Zoom links + films found here. ○ Sip & Pour | Thurs., Feb. 18 | 5:30-7 p.m. | Pinspiration Chattanooga, 2275 Gunbarrel Rd. | $42-$65 | Get over those Valentine’s Day blues with a sip + pour party. Create your own acrylic painting and enjoy a beverage. Tickets come with one beverage and all the supplies needed. 🍺
Disclaimer: It is up to readers’ discretion to determine whether they feel comfortable participating in any mentioned events based on COVID-19 protocols and precautions. If you have questions, please contact the event’s organizers directly.
MyBundle, newly-launched by EPB, is free (and easy) to use | Photo provided
Have you heard about EPB MyBundle? Offered through a partnership with MyBundle, this newly-launched service from EPB is free to use and can help find you the best streaming service + TV channel options at the best price for you.
We took some time to try it out and — spoiler-alert — found out we could be spending a whole lot less on our streaming subscriptions. Here’s how it went + how you can #TryThis.
Experience: Saving money using EPB’s new, free MyBundle service
What we tried: First, we mosied over to the EPB MyBundle homepage, then clicked “Get Started” to explore our options.
Next, we took a short, easy quiz, answering questions like “Which best describes your household?” and “What kind of content do you watch?”
Guilty as charged…
Approximately one minute later, we had our results. From Hulu Live TV to a customized bundle of channels, it was easy to compare our options + make an informed decision.
Check out our in-the-moment experience on Instagram, and click below to keep reading. Ⓟ
We asked you all what you’ve been eating lately and got some great replies. We truly love to hear from you. And we’ll be making our own pizzas ASAP.
“Turkish Red Lentil Soup! (Can be vegan or not depending on the broth you use.)” – Pinky Y.
“Pizza! I buy premade pizza dough and premade pizza sauce and spread it out over the pizza dough. I use a cookie sheet. Then I add fun ingredients. We especially like fresh sliced mozzarella, basil, artichokes, and fresh garlic, then topped with more shredded mozzarella. I sometimes add pepperoni, although not needed. Bake at 400 until the cheese melts – about 15 minutes. We have not had a store-bought pizza now in many months. This is a healthier option for us and tastes better. And it is so easy!” – Angela C.
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