Prism Health North Texas is proud to announce the 31st Annual LifeWalk is kicking off with a virtual event series ahead of the main event on October 3, 2021. LifeWalk is one of the largest and longest-running HIV awareness events in North Texas. The event benefits Prism Health North Texas’s mission to advance the health of North Texans through education, research, prevention, and personalized integrated HIV care.

While final decisions about the in-person LifeWalk event are being made, PHNTX has partnered with some favorite local businesses for a virtual event series this summer.

“We are excited to continue hosting virtual events to promote LifeWalk, and hope to add in-person events in the next few months with the help of some of the longtime LifeWalk teams,” PHNTX Events Manager Terry Walker said. “2021 marks the 31st LifeWalk and we are glad to continue partnering with businesses and leaders in the community.”

It Doesn’t Get Cheddar Than This June 17th virtual cheese tasting with Oak Lawn’s own Scardello Artisan Cheese. 

• During the Cheesemonger’s Faves event, attendees will sample eight of the Scardello Cheesemonger’s favorite cheeses and four accompaniments through the purchase of a $40 ticket, with a portion of all sales benefitting LifeWalk.

• There will also be wine available for additional purchase from the Oak Lawn storefront, to be picked up the day of the event.

  Cheers to Summer on July 16 with a virtual beer tasting hosted by the brewing experts at Texas Ale Project. 

• While sipping on a variety of stouts, lagers, and ales, attendees will learn more about the Texas Ale Project’s brewing process. 

• $40 Tickets include a six pack of Texas Ale Project beers, a souvenir glass, and a coupon for discounted beer-to-go and Growler Fills, with a portion of all sales benefiting LifeWalk. 

  “The anticipation of possibly holding a live event on October 3rd is really exciting as we begin to get more people out and about safely and carefully,” Walker added. “Being able to see the fun and excitement that LifeWalk brings. The energy [of the event] will be so welcomed for the community to come together and raise donations for Prism Health North Texas and to the many LifeWalk ambassadors that continue to support ending HIV in North Texas.”

The Turtle Creek Chorale, (TCC) Texas’ largest adult chorus, is back for in-person choral music performances. The fully vaccinated choir will make their debut with a performance of holiday classics at Holidays Interrupted on June 27, 2021 at 8pm.

After a year of virtual rehearsals and performances, 160 of the 250 fully vaccinated members of the chorus are elated to perform in-person at the historic Fair Park Band Shell for the first time since December of 2019 in what may be the largest in-person chorale performance since the beginning of the pandemic. 

“The TCC has always been a trailblazer,” Artistic Director Sean Baugh said. “This year is no different as we are thrilled to be one the first major choral performances since the start of the pandemic. We wear this responsibility proudly, and fully understand the importance of this milestone. As all members are fully vaccinated, we hope to create a safe atmosphere for both singers and patrons and mark this important return to live choral music.”

TCC leadership and its COVID-19 Task Force are keeping a close eye on federal and local guidelines regarding masks and other safety measures, with final decisions regarding masks for chorus and audience members to be made in the week before the show. 

The chorus is well known among Dallas audiences for its performances during the holiday season, and in response to the lackluster 2020 holiday season, has decided to launch its 41st season with a holiday tribute under the Texas sun.

“Instead of our usual magnificent holiday show, we presented a wonderful virtual holiday performance last year,” Baugh added. “But there is nothing like being together, experiencing the glorious music of the holidays in person. We all felt disappointment and empty hearts at the lack of in-person performances and knew we wanted to celebrate the season whenever and wherever we had a chance. Besides, we could all use a little joy and hope, even in 90-degree summer Dallas temperatures.”

Prism Health North Texas will be one of the largest US sites for IMPOWER 22, a study for a new form of PrEP medication designed for women and transgender men. In collaboration with Merck and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the study will have large numbers of participants in sub-Saharan Africa, where women and girls are at extremely high risk of contracting HIV. 

While there are currently two PrEP drugs on the market (Truvada and Descovy), Descovy has not been studied in large-scale clinical trials in women or transgender men, limiting them to one option for a pre-exposure prophylaxis treatment. The medication, islatravir, is a once-monthly oral tablet. Through funding provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, this study will focus on women and adolescent girls at high risk for acquiring HIV. The study was designed with the goal of ending the global HIV epidemic in mind. The women of sub-Saharan Africa specifically are an important target for new and improved drugs for PrEP as more than half of new HIV diagnoses in the world originate in this region. While the study will have a significant percentage of participants who are women in sub-Saharan Africa, Dallas-based PHNTX will be one of the largest sites testing participants in the United States.  

“PHNTX serves a large population of women who are either living with HIV or are at risk for acquiring HIV,” said Katie Mulosia, LMSW and senior clinical research study coordinator at PHNTX. “Our research unit has been very involved with the studies that have led to the approval of current options for HIV prevention, but many of these options have focused on prevention efforts in men.”

Prism Health North Texas hopes to empower North Texas women to make decisions regarding their health, contribute to scientific discovery, and to help end the HIV epidemic through participation in the study.

So, who can participate? 

Cisgender women aged 18-45 who do not have HIV, have been sexually active with at least one male partner in the past 30 days, are not in a mutually monogamous relationship with a recently tested HIV-negative partner, and meet at least one of the following criteria are candidates for this study:

• Infrequent use of condoms during sex with one or more partners of unknown HIV status who are bisexual men or men who use intraveneous drugs.

• In an ongoing sexual relationship with an HIV-positive partner.

• Diagnosed with syphilis, gonorrhea, or chlamydia in the past six months. 

Participants will be compensated for their time and all study medication and study-related tests will be provided at no cost.  Learn more at phntx.org/research.

PHNTX encourages Dallas-area women to volunteer for the study as part of efforts to study new treatments to end the HIV epidemic by expanding preventative treatment for women. Through participating, women are empowered to make decisions regarding their health, to contribute to scientific discovery, and to see if they qualify for clinical studies investigating the prevention of HIV. 

“Many of our clients and members of the community have asked us, ‘when will you do a PrEP study that focuses on women?’,” Mulosla added. “My colleagues and I are excited that we now can offer them an opportunity to participate in this clinical trial.”

The Dallas/Plano Marriott at Legacy Town Center, positioned in the center of Shops at Legacy, announces the completion of the $3.6 million renovation with Roch Capital of its state-of-the-art meeting spaces. The newly refreshed ballrooms and meeting spaces are now available for business and special events.  

Designed by C+TC Design Studio, the ultramodern development pays homage to the rich history of the beloved city of Plano. The word Plano is Spanish for "flat," and references a landscape with vast open spaces of its bygone times. The meeting space redesign highlights the transformation from raw agriculture to today's active cityscape. The design can be seen and felt in all elements from the carpet pattern to the lighting. 

The meeting rooms are equipped with TV wall elevations, bronze mirror accents, glass entryways and sliding millwork panels. Keeping comfort and productivity in mind, the pre-function room provides multi-piece seating that can be broken apart or placed together for those who prefer to work alone or with a group—all allowing or safe distancing with an intimate feel. Movable TV screens, flex consoles and communal tables allow attendees to transform the working space to meet their needs. 

The updated grand spiral staircase leads into the pre-function corridor, offering a spectacular photo opportunity for brides, grooms or anyone needing an ideal backdrop. The pre-function space also features stunning wall art that showcases prominent local landmarks. 

"The newly renovated space puts us on the map in North Texas as a true state-of-the-art meeting destination," said Jason Sojka, Area Sales Leader of Marriott Dallas/Plano at Legacy Town Center. "The ability to continue the hotel's long-standing reputation of outstanding customer service in this beautiful setting positions the hotel well moving into 2021 and beyond."

Dallas/Plano Marriott at Legacy Town Center is the largest hotel in Plano, accommodating 417 guest rooms and 35,000 square feet of event space. The hotel boasts a 24-hour fitness room and a gorgeous pool. Business travelers will enjoy the hotel’s amenities that will surely ignite productivity. 

Dallas/Plano Marriott at Legacy Town Center is located within the Shops at Legacy Town Center development and steps away from unique shopping, award-winning restaurants and lounges at 7121 Bishop Rd, Plano, TX 75024. For more information, please visit the website. 

 Images can be found here.

Friday, March 19th, marks the one year anniversary of Get Shift Done, a non-profit initiative that was launched in response to COVID-19 to pay a living wage to newly unemployed hospitality workers to fill the gap of volunteer shifts in hunger relief organizations, such as food banks, food pantries, and school systems. Created and in action in four days by serial entrepreneurs Patrick Brandt and Anurag Jain, the program rapidly expanded across the country with over 28,000 workers, 12 regions, and 110 non-profit agencies. In just one year, workers have completed almost one million shifts, served 60 million meals, and have been paid nearly $15 million wages for their work. Get Shift Done was ranked No. 1 under the Not-for-Profit category in Fast Company’s prestigious annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies for 2021. The initiative was also named No. 28 in their World’s Top 50 Most Innovative Companies list. It was a milestone first year by any industry standard. 

The initiative’s ramp-up period was short, beginning with a phone call on March 14, 2020 between Patrick Brandt, Co-founder of Get Shift Done and President and Co-founder of Shiftsmart, and Anurag Jain, Co-founder of Get Shift Done and Chairman of AccessHealthcare. At the time, Jain was serving as Board Chairman of the North Texas Food Bank and concerned about the non-profit’s loss of volunteers due to COVID-19 health safety concerns just as the demand for food distribution to their underserved communities was spiking. Through Shiftsmart, a labor management platform serving the modern workforce, Brandt saw hospitality and service workers losing shifts due to capacity limitations imposed on restaurants and hotels. Together, Jain and Brandt devised a plan to staff charitable organizations dedicated to hunger relief with unemployed hospitality workers by utilizing Shiftsmart’s technology. 

“I will never forget that week in March. From Anurag’s phone call on Sunday afternoon to the first shift on Thursday, we were in a full sprint for four days,” said Brandt. “In less than a week there were workers at North Texas Food Bank earning supplemental income packing food boxes to be placed on the tables of North Texans in need. It is inspiring to be part of such a powerful collaboration of community organizations, philanthropists, businesses, and hunger relief providers who all mobilized quickly to impact so many negatively affected by the pandemic.”

As workers were arriving at North Texas Food Bank for the first day of shifts, Shiftsmart’s Founder and CEO, Aakash Kumar, was on the floor of the food bank’s warehouse managing the Shiftsmart platform to ensure all was running smoothly to register and schedule additional shifts. At the same time, North Texas Food Bank was working to implement all CDC health protocols to screen every Get Shift Done worker that arrived at the food bank.

Within days of the initial North Texas commencement, other municipalities were contacting Get Shift Done requesting assistance in meeting the needs of the food insecure in their areas. The organization began identifying strong partners in those communities to direct them to food relief providers with solid infrastructures in order to scale the model nationally. Get Shift Done for North America was soon launched to partner with regions beyond Dallas and Fort Worth. The program expanded to Austin, Central Arkansas, El Paso, Houston, New Orleans, Northwest Arkansas, Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio and Washington D.C./Maryland/Virginia. 

“What a year it has been. We never dreamed that what we thought would be needed for 10-12 weeks in North Texas would grow to an entire year and reach thousands of Americans,” said Jain. “ 'How will I feed people?' was my immediate concern when the government mandated stay-at-home requirements and I was serving as Board Chairman of the North Texas Food Bank. Get Shift Done allowed us to quickly provide meals to vulnerable populations. It has been an honor to help serve our neighbors in need through this initiative.”

Get Shift Done was able to help bring stabilization to economies by putting skilled workers back to work in their communities. Matching the workers with the food access providers was accomplished using the Shiftsmart platform, which was provided at no cost to the non-profit groups. Shiftsmart’s operations team, leveraging its technology platform, wasinstrumental in launching the inspired program in multiple regions among more than 110 hunger relief organizations by managing the entire program end-to-end including onboarding, matching, scheduling, dispatching, routing and paying workers to perform shifts with the various non-profits. The initiative has surpassed its mission by not only providing income for adversely affected hourly workers in the hospitality industry but also a sense of purpose and community for those displaced from their jobs.

“The beauty of this initiative is the alliance of communities and the unity of working toward the common good,” said Jain. “Two groups of people needed one another: the displaced workers and those who manage the food banks and pantries.” 

Get Shift Done was launched with the help of founding supporters that include AccessHealthcare, Communities Foundation of Texas, Mark Cuban, Craig and Kathryn Hall, Lyda Hill Philanthropies, Margot Perot and Family, Sarah and Ross Perot Jr. Foundation, Katherine Perot Reeves and Eric Reeves, Shiftsmart and United Way of Metropolitan Dallas who were soon joined by national supporters Capital One and When I Work. 

What’s on the horizon for Get Shift Done? With hopes that the pandemic will soon begin to trend downward, and food access providers can return to their pre-COVID-19 volunteer schedules, organizers see this model as an ongoing solution to future community needs. The dramatic and sudden decrease in volunteers at non-profits during the coronavirus crisis created an opportunity to reassess if that structure is sustainable through the near future and future generations. 

“This movement marked a fundamental change in community service and was built to provide economic stabilization for workers and to support food insecure populations. We have been humbled daily by those who worked in the food banks and by those who financially supported the initiative. We hope to see the Get Shift Done model continue to offer assistance to hunger relief in our nation,” said Brandt.