Frisco continues to be one of North Texas' most sought-after places to live thanks to its growing job market, convenient location, and welcoming community. If you're searching for an apartment, having a plan can make the process much easier.

Here are five tips to help you find the right fit:

• Know your budget. Factor in rent, utilities, deposits, and any additional monthly fees before you start touring.
• Identify your must-haves. Whether it's in-home laundry, covered parking, or a pet-friendly community, knowing your priorities will help narrow your search.
• Consider the location. Think about your daily commute, nearby shopping and dining, and access to major roads like the Dallas North Tollway and Highway 121.
• Take notes during tours. Pay attention to details like storage, natural light, and the overall feel of each community.
• Review the lease carefully. Make sure you understand lease terms, renewal options, and community policies before signing.

Apartment hunting is about more than finding a place to live. It's about finding a community that fits your lifestyle.

For those exploring Frisco, The Links on PGA Parkway offers modern apartment homes, thoughtfully designed amenities, and convenient access to many of the dining, shopping, and recreation options that make the city such a great place to call home. Schedule a tour to see why so many residents are choosing to call The Links home.

Fifty years ago, “Smokey” John Reaves was smoking turkeys and hams in his backyard as thank-you gifts for his roofing and construction clients, stacking the extras in his mother-in-law’s bathtub because there was nowhere else to put them. That hobby became Smokey John’s Bar-B-Que and Home Cooking, a Dallas institution now led by his sons, Brent and Juan Reaves. On Saturday, Aug. 29, the family will open its parking lot and dining room at 1820 W. Mockingbird Lane for a free block party marking 50 years in business.

The milestone celebration begins with Smokey John’s annual Customer Appreciation Week, Aug. 24–29, and builds to the block party from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the 29th. Ten percent of that day’s sales will be donated to Helping Hands Open Hearts and RockTeen Youth Foundation, continuing a tradition of community giving the Reaves family traces directly back to its founder.

“My dad built this business on giving, relationships and connecting with the community” said Brent Reaves, co-owner of Smokey John’s. “Fifty years later, that’s still who we are. This block party is us celebrating all of the people who have been a part of us reaching this milestone.”

John Reaves opened his first restaurant, originally called Big John’s, at the corner of Lemmon Avenue and Mockingbird Lane in 1976 with his wife, Gloria, and cousin Douglas “Rent” Spraglin. The name changed after smoke from a pit fire filled the building and a customer joked they should call it Smokey John’s instead. In the late 1970s, Dallas Cowboys stars Drew Pearson and Harvey Martin invested in the restaurant, helping expand the concept across Texas and giving it a national spotlight when Martin plugged “the best barbecue in town” during ABC’s Superteams broadcast weeks after Super Bowl XII.

The business weathered real setbacks along the way, including a bankruptcy in the 1980s and a 2017 kitchen fire that shut the restaurant down for 16 months. Each time, the family rebuilt around what mattered most: faith, family and feeding people well. Brent and Juan Reaves took full ownership in 2013 and have since grown Smokey John’s into a restaurant, a major catering operation and one of the longest-standing black-owned vendors at the State Fair of Texas, where its six booths serve tens of thousands of turkey legs, brisket, ribs and tamales each fall. The family’s 50-year-old rub recipe is now also sold at H-E-B stores across Texas.

“Over the years we’ve learned that hospitality transcends cultures. Dad has always sold good food, but we’ve  learned he was really in the people business.”said Juan Reaves, co-owner of Smokey John’s. “Fifty years in, we’re not just serving barbecue — we’re carrying our father’s legacy forward  solidifying our mission to nourish the community through the joy of food, the strength of faith and the spirit of family.  Food, Faith, Family that’s what we’re all about.”

50th Anniversary Block Party Details

The Aug. 29 celebration will run from 11am to 4 pm and feature a performance by the Bishop Dunne Band, opening remarks from Brent and Juan Reaves, photo opportunities with local celebrities, vendor giveaways and activations, a DJ, face painting and a live musical performance. The day’s centerpiece is the unveiling of a newly commissioned portrait honoring the “Pillars of Smokey John’s” — founder John Reaves, his late wife Gloria Reaves, Douglas “Rent” Spraglin and Ruth Hauntz — followed by a sweet tea toast to the restaurant’s next 50 years.

The block party is presented by Frost Bank with support from the Mark Cuban Heroes Center and the Dallas Stars Foundation, alongside local vendors including Cookie Society, Mama Moore’s Popcorn, Mr. Sugar Rush, Jewels Kombucha and Tish’s Treasures. A portion of proceeds from the day will go to benefit Helping Hands Open Hearts to support seniors with food and everyday necessities, and to the RockTeen Youth Foundation which promotes positive life choices, leadership, and education.

Smokey John's Bar-B-Que is located at 1820 W. Mockingbird Ln, Dallas, TX. 75235. The event is free and open to the public; the restaurant remains open for regular service until 7 p.m.

Drs. Britni Duffie of Dallas, program aide in student affairs at Texas A&M University College of Dentistry in Dallas, and Dawn Miller McElroy of Garland, formerly a program aide, smile when someone mentions they’re new Class of 2026 dentists. They worked hard to earn dental degrees, and both have gold stars in perseverance.

Duffie said she attended nearly every predental program A&M Dentistry offers, while Miller McElroy called her path “the scenic route” to dentistry when describing her decade-plus academic climb. That’s why they led this year’s Summer Pre-Dental Enrichment Programs, designed to provide high school and undergraduate students with opportunities to attend at no charge, with stipends, to learn about the dental profession and increase their chances of getting into both college and dental school.

“I remember the long days and nights studying, the pressure to do well, the desire to know all you can to increase your chances of success in dental school admissions, and the nerves about applying to dental school, which many are in the process of doing at this moment,” Duffie said. “It’s a critical and exciting time in their academic journeys and our understanding of that helped us to anticipate what questions they would have, how they’re feeling, and to offer resources and advice that helped us.”

Part of the college’s Bridge to Dentistry academic enrichment programs for prekindergarten through college, SPEP and other initiatives are supported by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Centers of Excellence grants. High schoolers, college students and others have been on campus from late spring through the summer learning the basics of dentistry, conducting research and preparing for the admissions process.

A goal of Bridge to Dentistry is to grow health professionals who will address the needs of populations and communities that are underserved in dentistry, said Dr. Rosemarie Zartman, clinical associate professor of comprehensive dentistry and interim director of student development.

“We encourage all of them to succeed in the programs and eventually ‘give back’ in service,” she said. “These two doctors are now coming full circle and represent the success stories that we are able to be connected to every year.”

More than 70 students enrolled in SPEP this year. Collegiate I and II for those with some college led the schedule and ran in May and June. The final session, SPEP 10 and 11 for rising high school sophomores and juniors, ran July 13-17.

Duffie entered SPEP as a rising junior in 2015 while also studying dental assisting in a Dallas Independent School District program at High School for Health Professions at Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Center. At Townview, she was mentored by Dr. Ernestine Lacy, professor and associate dean for student affairs, who oversaw the program before retiring in May.

Duffie later attended Texas Woman’s University in Denton, where she earned a bachelor’s in biology in 2021. She also attended A&M Dentistry’s Collegiate programs in the summers.

Still, Duffie knew neither her grades nor her Dental Admission Test scores were high enough to impress dental school admissions officers. Enrollment in A&M Dentistry’s dental class is capped at 106 students each year.

Duffie was rejected, but A&M Dentistry offered her a spot in the Post-Baccalaureate Program, which allows select applicants to take additional coursework at The University of Texas at Dallas for one year while also attending special courses at A&M Dentistry in two summers. Duffie welcomed that extra year and continues to appreciate the connections it provided her to others on similar tracks; Duffie met Miller McElroy in PBP.

Those who successfully complete the rigorous program are granted admission to A&M Dentistry.

“By working with Dr. Miller McElroy and me, and hearing about our journeys, the students in this year’s SPEP can look at us and know that they will succeed and make it into dental school,” Duffie said. “I also hope they know there is no pressure to fit into anyone else’s timeline, and our journeys toward dental school also serve as proof of that.”

Miller McElroy’s ties to SPEP began her senior year at Garland High School in 2012-13, after she chose prehealthcare electives and took a field trip to A&M Dentistry’s campus on Gaston Avenue. On a whim and attracted by stipends offered to students, Miller McElroy entered SPEP 12 – the four-week program in June for rising high school seniors. Students learn about the dental profession, prepare for the SAT, visit colleges and work to improve their chances of admission into competitive institutions.

“We learned how to wax a tooth and make lab models,” she said.

Miller McElroy entered before attending The University of Texas at Dallas to earn a bachelor’s in healthcare studies. She was encouraged by Dr. Jonathan Clemetson, clinical faculty in comprehensive dentistry and a 2002 A&M Dentistry dental graduate, who continues to support SPEP students.

“He talked about work-life balance,” she said. “If you’re a dentist, you can still have time for family, you can have hobbies and you can enjoy your life while still being part of healthcare…Going into college, I knew I wanted to go into dentistry.”

Miller McElroy also attended Collegiate I and Collegiate II. Each student takes two non-science courses at no charge at Dallas College’s Mountain View Campus, then attends a preclinical course and a lab at A&M Dentistry and another course to prepare for the DAT. They also shadow dentists and dental students.

“It’s a commitment, and we want students to understand that,” she said.

Miller McElroy struggled at UTD, in Collegiate II and on the DAT, despite doing well academically in high school. To improve her chances of acceptance to a dental college, she worked as an orthodontic assistant at a practice in Plano and took an extra year of classes at Southern Methodist University. Miller McElroy also worked at an Apple Store and took a brief career detour with a year-long ministry apprenticeship.

After earning her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from A&M Dentistry in May and teaching the SPEP participants, Miller McElroy headed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to begin a one-year general dentistry residency at Philadelphia VA Healthcare System/Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. She plans to enter private practice in the Dallas area when the residency ends.

Her drive resonated with Fredor “Fred” Bihizi, a student in Collegiate II, who took the class to prepare for the DAT and immerse himself in dentistry. Originally from Burundi, he earned a bachelor’s in nursing from the University of Maine but developed an interest in dentistry after a recent opportunity to shadow a dentist in Tarrant County.

Bihizi found the program while researching online. SPEP showed him what first-year dental students encounter and allowed him to gain insights from Miller McElroy and Duffie and to meet A&M Dentistry faculty, including Clemetson and Dr. Shaun Logan, instructional associate professor in biomedical sciences.

He works at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth and plans to take the DAT for the first time before the end of the year.

“I’m well prepared, and I feel like this is going to help me beyond the application...,” Bihizi said. “I’m looking at how I can be successful in dental school, not only just getting in, but also being the best student I can be at the school and performing well.”

A&M Dentistry is his first choice.

The application deadline for the Class of 2031 is Oct. 1. Nearly 1,500 applied to A&M Dentistry through Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service last year.

Duffie plans to go into general dentistry and wants meaningful work.

“I got to experience what a joy it is to give back to the students the way others gave and poured into me,” Duffie said. “I truly enjoyed working with the summer programs, and I hope that any work I do in the future will be more driven by the desire to do work that is personally fulfilling than by external metrics of success.”

DALLAS, TX - Council for Life announces their 25^th anniversary Celebrating Life Luncheon: A Legacy of Love and Life is on October 29, 2026, at the Hilton Anatole Hotel.Heisman Trophy winner, ESPN and SEC football college commentator, author, and life advocate, Tim Tebow, is the featured Luncheon speaker.

In celebration of Council for Life’s 25th anniversary, the nonprofit has set a historic goal of raising more than $2 million to create a lasting, generational impact in our community. Money raised will help fund grants to 33 carefully vetted and selected beneficiaries who serve those experiencing unplanned pregnancies. (See the list of CFL’s Beneficiaries here.) These beneficiaries provide women and families with a spectrum of free, compassionate support, including medical care, maternity housing, pregnancy resources, parenting and life skills education, fatherhood initiatives, and student sexual risk avoidance education. In 2026, CFL estimates that their funding will help support over 78,000 pregnancy center visits, saving countless babies in the Dallas–Fort Worth area alone.

Co-Chaired by philanthropic leaders Stephanie Baker and Lynne Schott, the Luncheon promises to be an inspiring afternoon. “We invite everyone to join us to celebrate,” said Stephanie. "I can't think of anyone better to join us as we celebrate our 25th anniversary than Tim Tebow. His strong faith and his commitment to the sanctity of life make him the perfect fit for this milestone year," added Lynne.

Council for Life is thrilled to recognize CFL Founder Emeritus Ann Carruth and her husband, David Carruth, as this year’s Luncheon Honorary Chairs. CFL is deeply grateful for Ann’s visionary leadership and the Carruth’s unwavering devotion to shape a culture of life in Dallas.

"We are immensely thankful to our Honorary and Luncheon Chairs for their steadfast service to Council for Life and their bold, courageous commitment to protect babies and help vulnerable mothers, fathers, and families," said Lee Anne Morris, CFL Executive Director.

For information on table and ticket opportunities, visit: councilforlifeluncheon.com

About Council for Life

Council for Life (CFL) exists to empower women, men and youth to make life-affirming choices. Motivated by Christ-like love and responsive compassion, CFL is committed to raising awareness of the humanity of preborn babies and the complex issues that surround unplanned pregnancies. Through the generosity of donors, CFL provides financial support to agencies that share their mission.

In celebration of its 125th anniversary, Texas Woman’s University has selected Portland-based artist Bianca Beck to create a site-specific, permanent outdoor installation marking the university’s 125th anniversary and the culmination of its Dream Big fundraising campaign, which concludes this year and is expected to exceed its $125 million goal. The artwork will be on view from October 24, 2026 on the university’s Denton campus.

The artwork will consist of three large-scale, biomorphic sculptures fabricated in fiberglass with steel armatures, designed to withstand the elements while maintaining a dynamic sense of movement and transformation. Conceived as “body doubles,” these forms evoke the Platonic myth of an original, unified human body, reimagined here as fluid, intertwined figures that shift in appearance as viewers move around them. Beck’s sculptures occupy a space between painting and sculpture, their vividly expressive surfaces responding intuitively to form and environment, and activating the surrounding landscape through color, scale, and gesture.

“These figures are not fixed,” Beck notes. “They are in the act of becoming. They are shaped as much by the viewer’s movement and perception as by their own internal logic. What appears as a solitary stride may, from another vantage point, become an embrace. I’m interested in how we hold multiplicity, and how identity, community, and resilience emerge through connection.”

In recent years, Beck has expanded their practice into increasingly ambitious public and outdoor presentations, with works exhibited at institutions including the Ulrich Museum of Art, Wichita, KS; deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, Lincoln, MA; the Shelburne Museum of Art, Shelburne, VT; and the FLAG Art Foundation, New York, NY. Beck will open a solo exhibition of new large-scale indoor sculptures at the Center for Maine Contemporary Art this May.

Beck’s special presentation has been commissioned to celebrate Texas Woman’s 125^th anniversary and the successful conclusion of Dream Big, the university’s first comprehensive fundraising campaign.

Texas Woman’s is the nation’s first and only woman-focused university system, with campuses in Denton, Dallas, and Houston. Established by the Texas Legislature in 1901 as a small industrial training college for women, the university has grown into a Carnegie-classified R2 research institution nationally recognized for student experience, social and economic mobility, and academic quality. Recent milestones include the opening of a $107 million Health Sciences Center and the launch of the Doswell School of Aeronautical Sciences, a woman-focused aviation program. The university is widely known for its leadership in nursing, education, the health professions, nutrition, the arts and sciences, and business.

A defining element of Beck’s installation is its aesthetic alignment with the three pillars of the Dream Big campaign—Open Doors, Fuel Innovation, and Cultivate Grit—creating a visual expression of movement, transformation, and resilience.

“Beck’s work embodies the spirit of the Dream Big campaign,” said Jaime Porter, TWU’s vice president for university advancement and alumni engagement. “These sculptures speak to growth, creative movement and strength — qualities reflected in our students, alumni and donors.”

The exhibition will be accompanied by student performances and related anniversary programming, inviting students, faculty, and the broader community to engage with the work and its themes. Additional details will be announced later atdreambig.twu.edu

About the Artist

Bianca Beck (b. 1979, Columbus, OH) earned a BFA from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA and an MFA from Yale University, New Haven, CT. The artist has participated in exhibitions at the Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, VT; Beeler Gallery at Columbus College of Art and Design, Columbus, OH; the Contemporary Art at MECA, Porland, ME; Contemporary Art Matters, Columbus, OH; Opelvillen Rüsselsheim, Rüsselsheim, Germany; V1 Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark; the FLAG Art Foundation, New York, NY; White Columns, New York, NY; and Cheim & Read, New York, NY; among others. In 2024, Beck had a solo presentation at Matéria, Detroit, MI. Beck currently has work on view at Summit Public Art, Summit, NJ and Art Omi Sculpture Park, Ghent, NY. They are a recipient of numerous awards and fellowships, including the Helen Winternitz Award for Excellence in Painting at Yale University, New Haven, CT; The Ox-Bow School of Art Fellowship Program, Saugatuck, MI; and Artist-in-Residence at Complimenta, Ithaca, NY. Beck’s work is in the permanent collection of the Dallas Art Museum, Dallas, TX, and the Rachofsky Collection, Dallas, TX. Beck lives and works in Portland, ME.

About Texas Woman’s University

Founded in 1901, Texas Woman’s University (TWU) is the nation’s largest university system focused on women. For 125 years, TWU has advanced a mission of expanding opportunity through education, innovation, and leadership. Today, TWU is a Carnegie-classified R2 institution with campuses in Denton, Dallas, and Houston, offering programs across the liberal arts and sciences, nursing, health sciences, business, and education.

Committed to access, affordability, and student success, TWU continues to prepare students for impact in a global society while driving research that addresses critical issues in health, education, and community wellbeing.