Sheraton Dallas is excited to announce their Club Lounge is open again. The Club Lounge is complimentary to all Marriott Bonvoy Platinum/Titanium and Ambassador Elite Members. Club level upgrades are also available to purchase online or at the front desk. 

The Club Lounge is a relaxing, upscale space where guests can unwind and enjoy a complimentary breakfast or evening hors d’oeuvres. Ideal for business travelers, the Club Lounge includes a copier/fax/printer and complimentary office supplies. 

Complimentary grab-and-go breakfast bento boxes are available. There are four different bento boxes with food and drink options ranging from croissants, muffins, cereals, yogurts, fruits, granola bars, biscuit sandwich, and breakfast charcuterie including salami, ham, cheese and boiled egg. 

During the day, assorted drinks and individually wrapped snacks are provided. 

A PM reception is also available, and items are served by an attendant. Items available include a salad, local cheese, crackers and fruits, one chef’s choice hot item, mini desserts, and a beer and wine selection.  

The Club Lounge is open for morning hours Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 11 a.m., and breakfast is available for pick-up from 6 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. During the evening, the lounge is open from Sunday to Thursday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. with hors d’oeuvres from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and beer and wine from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Who else has found joy in podcasts this year? Whether on a commute, on a run or walk through the neighborhood, or just listening while baking bread and relaxing at home, this year has seen a large increase in the number of weekly podcast listeners across the country.

 The Project Connect team at Prism Health North Texas is proud to announce the launch of their new podcast, “Beneath the Briefs”. The North Texas based nonprofit HIV/AIDS service organization hopes to use the modern art of podcasting to engage with the community in and around Dallas outside their regular 8 AM to 5 PM clinic hours. Hosted by Behavioral Intervention Specialist, Ana Fuentes, and Marketing Manager, Tri Truong, new episodes of Beneath the Briefs are scheduled to be released weekly on Fridays.

The Project Connect team would typically be organizing events, physically distributing condoms and other materials, and visiting with patients in person but in the year of COVID-19, they are using virtual methods to reach their audience. While in-person events are missed, Fuentes is excited about the opportunity to reach North Texans who may not be able to visit their clinics in person or have busy schedules. 

“Podcasts are an ideal way to easily engage audiences while they are engaged in other activities,” Fuentes said. “For example, many listeners here in the DFW area commute for hours, and by listening to our episodes, the commute is suddenly not so bad. Similarly, with social distancing, many people have also turned to exercising and enjoying time outdoors and are spending more time at home studying or working from home. But beware, you might find yourself fully engaged in the listening after a few minutes.”

Topics to be discussed include sex, sexual wellness, culture, and happenings in North Texas. The Project Connect team is constantly researching new topics and upcoming episodes will cover accessing healthcare, exploring STI prevention options such as PrEP, race and gender related issues, and more. Excited to host guests from a diverse and knowledgeable group, Project Connect team has invited several PHNTX staff members including Dr. Deborah Morris-Harris, Chief Medical Officer, and Amy Barrier, Nurse Practitioner to discuss topics related to their areas of expertise. 

“Because we explore topics regarding sexual health, we want to make sure we provide information that pertains to everyone,” Fuentes added. “Specifically, serving members of the LGBTQ and other marginalized communities is a priority.”

As the first season of Beneath the Briefs is in full swing with four episodes already live, the team is already excited to produce a special series focusing on stigma and other culturally diverse topics. Episodes on stigma will also be recorded in Spanish.

“We are excited to enter this medium as we begin to scratch the surface of topics we can explore,” said Andrew Wilson, Project Connect Director. “Podcasts are an effective way to engage with our community in a constantly changing media landscape.”

The first five episodes of Beneath the Briefs are ready for listeners to enjoy wherever they get their podcasts and are always invited to share their suggestions for discussion topics with the hosts at beneaththebriefs@prismntx.org. 

Tune into the first four episodes here: phntx.org/beneath-the-briefs-podcast/

Hyatt Regency Frisco-Dallas is celebrating the Fall season with new decorations, photo opportunities, new Fall flavored cocktails, and a low rate! The hotel provides the perfect destination for a Fall getaway in Frisco.

Upon entering the hotel you can find a photo backdrop, bales of hay and pumpkins providing guests the perfect Instagrammable spot. Guests can receive $5 off a $20+ purchase at Copper & Steel Table and Bar if they post a photo in front of the Fall backdrop on social media and tag the hotel on Instagram or Facebook and use the hashtags #hyattregencyfrisco and #copperandsteelathyatt.

In order to keep your Fall spirit up, there are plenty of nearby attractions to help you celebrate the season including:

• Pumpkins on the Prairie 

• Big Orange Pumpkin Farm at Preston Trail Farm

• Sci-Tech Discovery Center’s Spooky Science event on Oct. 31 from 10-5pm

• My Gym’s Halloween Party for children

• Shades of Green Pumpkin Painting 

• Frisco Fresh Market for fall activities 

• First Frisco UMC Church Pumpkin Patch

• North Texas Performing Arts’ Trunk or Treat on Oct. 31 from 11am-4pm

• Trick or Treat with The Rail District on Oct. 31 from 3-5pm 

• Travel to Dallas for the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden’s The Art of the Pumpkin festival 

• Kidzania is the perfect place for kids and is next door to the hotel. It is a dynamic, real-life city built to inspire, educate and empower kids through immersive learning experiences with more than 100 hands-on activities where kids can role-play. It may not be Fall-inspired, but it can’t be missed! 

Copper & Steel Table and Bar, located in Hyatt Regency Frisco-Dallas’ lobby, has new fall cocktails available to enjoy the seasonal flavors, including the Apple Cider Mule, Sidecar, Not So Hot Toddy, and Spiced Pear Fizz.

Book your Fall getaway at Hyatt Regency Frisco-Dallas while they are offering guests a special room rate of $99+tax for standard rooms, based on availability. Rooms can be booked by visiting the hotel’s website and using the booking code, FRIS99. 

Hyatt Regency Frisco-Dallas is a 18-story, 303-room hotel and is located within Frisco’s Stonebriar Centre between Nordstrom and Dillard’s and can be accessed from the mall on the second floor. 

Just in time for temperatures to start dropping in Dallas, Open Palette has stirred up a new cocktail that tastes like fall in a cup. Meet the Local Apple!  

One of Open Palette’s bartenders crafted the Local Apple cocktail recipe using the local Dallas distillery, Herman Marshall Whiskey.

If you prefer to sip the cocktail from the comfort of your home, Open Palette’s bartenders have shared the ingredients so you can mix the cocktail, curl up by a fire or to watch a movie, and enjoy! 

Local Apple:

• 2 oz. Herman Marshall Whiskey

• 1 oz. Egg White

• ¾ oz. Lemon Juice

• ½ oz. Simple Syrup

• ¼ Muddled Apple

• Garnish with a toasted apple moon and a cinnamon sprinkle

Open Palette, Sheraton Dallas Hotel’s restaurant and bar, is located inside the hotel and offers modern American cuisine with bold spins on flavors. Pair the cocktail with the restaurant’s popular dish, the Nashville Hot Chicken Sandwich.

Throughout the hotel and Open Palette, there are deeper and more frequent cleanings performed by the hotel’s Sanitization Team with hospital-grade disinfectants and electrostatic sprayers, re-arranged furniture to allow for more distancing, partitions at service lines, physical distancing signage, a QR code for menus, and hand sanitation stations throughout, among many other protocols to ensure safety among guests and staff.

Sheraton Dallas Hotel is the largest hotel in North Texas with 1,840 guest rooms and 230,000 square feet of flexible meeting and convention spaces. The hotel recently completed renovations in November 2019. 

After months of uncertainty, social isolation and economic hardships, it is important now more than ever to examine mental health among teens.In this American Psychological Association article, it states that “...loneliness and social isolation are twice as harmful to physical and mental health as obesity”. 

To help their high school students experience positive mental health and to support them in their success, Texans Can Academies has 24/7 professional counseling services available for their students at all 14 campuses in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Students can call a toll-free number 24-hours, seven-days-a-week, year-round for emergencies or to schedule off-campus counseling appointments to help them with any issues they are experiencing, big or small. Texans Can Academies covers the cost of the services making it possible for their students to receive completely confidential, complimentary crisis intervention help when they need it.

Texans Can Academies has always strived to help their students with all aspects of their care and provides their students with the opportunity to openly discuss their fears, insecurities, worries and anything else trouble them. Texans Can Academies does not receive any information about who uses the program or why. Up to three counseling appointments are available for each different problem a student may have in one school year. 

Written consent from a parent or legal guardian is required for students under the age of 18 years seeking to receive counseling services. All services are confidential in compliance with HIPAA regulations and State student requirements.

Texans Can Academies is a unique network of 14 charter schools located in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. The schools are tuition-free, open enrollment, public high schools of choice serving students who have struggled in a high school setting.