Target's robot manicurists clock out from 3 Dallas-Fort Worth stores

Beauty news

Photo courtesy of Clockwork

Attention, Target shoppers: The days of popping into the beauty aisle for a $10 manicure performed by a robot are coming to an end. Target and Clockwork, the robots' parent company, confirm that the service will end at all stores - including three in Dallas-Fort Worth - February 20.

"Our robots at Target will be removed as we conclude a very successful pilot," says a spokesperson for Clockwork. "Our last day will be Monday, Feb 20, 2023. We have enjoyed working with the Target team, and thank all our customers for all the love and support they have shown us. We hope to be back to serve them soon."

Adds a Target representative, "At the end of February, Target and Clockwork will conclude a successful pilot that brought Clockwork manicures to select Target stores, an offering that drove new insights around our in-store experience. At this time, we are not expanding the service. We are always evaluating how to better meet our guests’ needs and will continue exploring ways to bring valuable services they will love to Target."

Launched in spring 2022, the Clockwork system was touted as the world's first fully autonomous nail-painting robot and has been offered at Target Fort Worth Central (301 Carroll St.), Fort Worth's Target Cityview (5700 Overton Ridge Blvd.), and Dallas' Target Medallion (6464 E NW Hwy.) .

DFW was the third test-market for Clockwork, behind cities in Minnesota and California. All stores are ending the service.

The Clockwork manicures, dubbed "minicures," are nail-painting sessions that take 10 minutes and cost $10.

Clockwork robot manicures Target The high-tech robots take pictures of your nail. Photo courtesy of Clockwork

To paint nails, the machines rely on cameras, data, and algorithms. Users place a digit on a finger rest and slide it into the machine, where two cameras rapidly take about 100 pictures of the nail. Those images are used to create a 3-D point cloud showing the shape of the nail, and this data is used to figure out where the edges of your nail are located. This information is then used by algorithms that figure out things such as how (and how fast) the machine’s polish-dispensing pipette should move to apply paint to your nail.

A human attendant stands by to help position hands correctly in the machine and to tidy up polish afterwards.

Although the robots are not as accurate as a real-life manicurists, they do provide a quick, cheap alternative for budget-minded consumers on the go.

In a February 13 email to customers, Clockwork says there are some new things in the works.

"We couldn’t be more thrilled to announce that our next generation robot is ready to paint! The first of many next gen robots launched in San Francisco last week at in the LinkedIn building, with more locations to be announced soon," they write. "The most exciting change to our next gen robot is that it is fully autonomous. That’s right, it is now completely self serve, with live customer support available at the touch of a button. We hope to return to Target locations in the future, once our autonomous experience has been perfected for their store environment."

They will be rolling out the next gen robots throughout 2023, they say.

For now, there are still some appointments available through February 20 at all DFW stores. Those with unused service bundles can book their appointments and share discount codes with friends.

Those who are unable to use their bundles before they close should email customer support for a refund.

Photo by Maria Diss

Top Dallas medspa debuts in Fort Worth with celeb-worthy technology

New year, new spa

A Dallas-based medspa known for “humming out beach bods left and right,” its owner says, has opened a location in Fort Worth. Vitalyc Medspa, which also has outlets in Dallas, Addison, and Southlake, is now seeing clients at its newest facility in University Park Village at 1612 S. University Dr.. (Look for it between Madewell and Ann Taylor.)

With services that focus on face, body, and skin, Vitalyc provides a one-stop shop for the latest in injectables, body contouring, and laser skin resurfacing. The 2,800-square-foot contemporary space offers seven private treatment rooms behind a lobby area with floor-to-ceiling windows. Treatment rooms are bright and modern with framed posters of beautiful models in black and white.

Owner Amir Mortazavi, a cowboy hat-wearing Southern California native who “got to Texas as fast he could” 21 years ago at age 18, says Vitalyc’s medical leadership and multifaceted focus is what sets his medspa apart from competitors.

“Our chief medical officer is a facial plastic surgeon. We’ve got dermatologists and ER doctors,” he says. “Plenty of our competitors are really focused on one modality. Because we cover all three spectrums – injectables, body contouring, and laser skin resurfacing – we’re able to offer a comprehensive product that others just aren’t.”

Services include:

Injections and Fillers – Botox, Dysport, Kybella, and dermal fillers
Body Contouring – EmSculpt NEO, Coolsculpting, EMTONE, and Z Wave
Face and Skin Rejuvenation – EMFACE, Forma facial, Halo Hybrid-fractional, HydraFacial, laser hair removal, Morpheus8, Moxi, Photofacial/BBL, SkinPen Microneedling, and Visia Skin Analysis
Wellness – Medical weight loss, Emsella, hormone optimization, and IV therapy

Mortazavi says anyone may schedule a complimentary consultation to help navigate through the often-intimidating process of understanding medspa services. During those consultations, Vitalyc uses in-depth diagnostic tools, including, for example, a high-tech body scanner that measures body fat to allow for a more accurate before-and-after report for body contouring services.

There’s also the Visia Skin Analysis that can decipher the true age of your skin based on sun damage, dermis and epidermis comparison, analysis of hyperpigmentation, and more.

“Our job here is to educate you on the treatments that we have. You don’t have to come here and feel obligated. We’re not a used car dealership,” he says. “We try to create custom packages based on everyone’s budget, lifestyle, and goals. It’s a judgment-free consultation.”

Vitalyc is set to open two locations in Houston later this year, and 25 total locations are planned for Texas by 2026. Although he launched Dallas, Addison, and Southlake first, Mortazavi says a Fort Worth location was always a priority for his medspa brand.

“We wanted to own DFW market and can’t do that without Fort Worth,” he says. “We were very patient. If it were my choice, I would have built Dallas first, then Fort Worth, then built in between. But this space was not available. I worked on this space for about two years. I was kind of relentless with it.”

The Fort Worth location offers two exclusive “817 Circle” memberships: one for $99 a month and one for $180 a month. Each comes with a set number of skin and facial treatments and permanent discounts on all products and services. Vitalyc Fort Worth is also offering a grand opening special of 20 percent off all treatment packages through March 1, 2023.

Hours are 8 am-7 pm Monday-Thursday, 8 am-6 pm Friday, 10 am-6 pm Saturday, and Sunday by appointment only.

Photo courtesy of Heyday

New York skincare shop Heyday brings its fuss-free facials to Southlake

Prettying up

A new facial and skincare shop with a goal to “take the facial out of the spa and into your life” has debuted in Southlake: Heyday opened its doors in Southlake Town Square on Thursday, January 19.

Heyday Southlake is the brand's first location in Tarrant County and the second in North Texas, after a shop opened in Dallas’ Knox-Henderson district in December.

Heyday offers 50-minute facials at a more affordable price ($135) than most luxury spas. They keep things simple and unfussy by providing just one type of facial that gets tailored to each client. To be clear, it's not a med spa - no fillers or laser lipo being done here.

All facials include a thorough skin analysis by a trained esthetician, who customizes treatments with services like exfoliation, masks, extractions, and facial massage, then offers a personalized regimen that guests can replicate at home with the same products and brands available for purchase in-store and online.

Optional facial enhancements include Gua Sha, microdermabrasion, LED light therapy, professional peels, microcurrent, and hydration infusion.

In a release, they emphasize that there’s not “one size fits all” when it comes to caring for guests’ skin.

“Consumers are focused on self-care and wellness now more than ever before, and with that comes the need to help them break through the noise and choose what’s best for their individual needs,” says Patrick Ryan-Southern, CEO of L5 Skincare, the Heyday franchising entity, in a statement. “Heyday aids consumers in doing exactly that by providing them with product recommendations and facials formulated to address their individual needs from real experts.”

Similar to a business model such as Facelogic (which no longer has Tarrant locations), Heyday offers monthly memberships that provide discounts on services and products. Another similarity is that treatments are performed in semi-private rooms, and guests do not undress into a robe (as they would at a luxury spa), making it easier to fit facials into everyday schedules, they say.

Heyday's retail shop sells high-end and "clean" brands such as Naturopathica, Image, Moon Juice, One Love, Grown Alchemist, Ursa Major, Supergoop, Skyn Iceland, and more.

Heyday was founded in 2015 in New York by Adam Ross, who set out to make facials more approachable and accessible to all, according to the website. The concept took off, and the company expanded coast-to-coast, with locations across California and throughout the United States. The Dallas and Southlake Heydays are the first two in Texas, with more to come, they say.

Southern tells CultureMap that Southlake was a natural fit for the company.

"In addition to its premiere dining and shopping destination, Southlake is filled with families, businesspeople, and young professionals who we believe would benefit from the accessible 50-minute facial services that Heyday offers," he says. "Enjoying a treatment at Heyday doesn’t require setting a whole day aside, and that’s what makes it a favorite destination for so many of our busy clients looking to prioritize their self-care.”

As for the name, the website says, “We want you to leave feeling at your prime. To live in your ‘heyday’ each day.”

To celebrate the opening of Heyday Southlake, the shop is offering all first time facials for $70 (normally $135); book here.

Memberships are available for $104 per month, which includes a monthly facial; 50 percent off enhancements, and 20 percent off all products at sign-up then 15 percent off anytime). Non-member facials are always $135.

Heyday is at 116 State St., Ste. 150, Southlake Town Square. Hours are 10 am-7 pm Monday and Friday, 10 am-8 pm Tuesday through Thursday, and 9 am- to 6 pm Saturday and Sunday.

To learn more or book an appointment, visit their website.

Photo courtesy of Lake Austin Spa Resort

Texas' dreamiest destination spa unwraps regal $1,000 facial for 25th anniversary

Palatial pampering

When the Lake Austin Spa Resort went shopping for a 25th-anniversary gift for guests, it aimed higher than traditional silver and picked treatments that incorporated gold, diamonds, and caviar. As a result, the dreamy destination spa now offers some of the most opulent, exclusive, and — at upwards of $1,000 — most expensive facials in the world.

In anticipation of its milestone anniversary in 2022, the Lake Austin Spa Resort’s LakeHouse Spa partnered with Swiss luxury skincare brand Valmont to introduce the new facials, which are as cutting-edge as they are indulgent.

Creme de la creme among them is The Regal by Valmont, which costs a jaw-dropping $1,050. The Regal was designed in Switzerland exclusively for LakeHouse Spa, and Austin is the only place in the world to get it.

“It’s definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience for a lot of people,” says Becky Bence, Lake Austin Spa Resort lead esthetician. “And it’s definitely worth it.”

The 135-minute facial begins with the high-tech deep cleanse of the HydroFacial and proceeds with seven masks, including four collagen masks, a papaya enzyme, and a medical-grade LED light mask. Every single product from Valmont’s ultra luxe “masterpiece collection” called l’Elixir des Glaciers is used; some products are made with an uber anti-aging essence of gold sturgeon fish. All are applied using a Valmont signature “butterfly” motion that helps to lift and sculpt the face.

What puts the Regal over the top, though, are 35 minutes of choreographed massage, including a 500-year-old technique called “kobido,'' developed for the empress of Japan. Touted as a “surgical facelift as a massage," Bence says, kobido was once reserved only for nobility and the empress, then later handed down from masters to disciples.

So rarified is the Regal facial, that just six of the 21 LakeHouse Spa estheticians are trained to perform it. They learned at a weeklong “bootcamp” conducted by two Valmont experts who flew in to Austin from Switzerland.

“It was kind of like the Navy Seal program of facials,” Bence says. “It was kind of like being handed down something from a true master.”

The $1K price tag hasn’t kept people away. Since the Regal was introduced several months ago, guests have come from all over the world — and from all corners of Texas — to experience what the spa calls “the ultimate in anti-aging perfection and cellular renewal.” (After all $1,000 is still far less than an actual facelift or even regular nick-tuck-plump-ups by a cosmetic surgeon.)

Why reach all the way to Switzerland for the palatial new treatments? After emerging from COVID shutdowns, Bence says, LakeHouse Spa personnel “auditioned” just about every single skincare line out there. The estheticians voted, and Valmont won.

“We wanted to add something really special, something luxurious but yet something out-of-this-world amazing that truly benefited the skin,” Bence says. “Something almost to replace Botox and fillers …that gave you basically a natural face-lift without being invasive but still being relaxing.”

In addition to the Regal, other new Valmont facials introduced in this 25th anniversary year include:

The 150-minute Gold & Diamond Trifecta Facial that involves three massages, four masks, infra-red LED, and a hydrogel mask with micronized gold and diamonds, which costs $990.

The Golden Aura Rose & Caviar Facial, a 100-minute treatment that incorporates marine products containing caviar extract and Diamond Collagen, costing $790.

Energy of the Glaciers, a 90-minute facial that features rare ingredients from Switzerland and deep, structural massage of the face, stimulating muscles to tone and lift; $750.

Luminosity of Ice Facial, a 90-minute treatment described as a “toxin-flushing, facial reflexology-inspired facial” that uses a cocktail of seven plants organically cultivated at high altitudes; $650.

The spa also has a complete menu of non-Valmont facials and dozens of other signature treatments.

Luxe but laid back
Lake Austin Spa Resort’s Dallas-based co-owner, Mike McAdams, says the new facials are indicative of how high the spa wanted to aim for its 25th anniversary.

“Our guest demands a luxurious, more refined experience, and Valmont helps us deliver on that objective,” he says.

And yet, Lake Austin Spa Resort remains a place where robed guests can emerge from a $1,000 facial and step over geckos skittering along the sidewalk while a speedboat whizzes by pumping Beyonce through the speakers. It’s upscale but unpretentious, luxurious but laid-back — almost like “spa camp.”

“We never wanted to create the ‘zen’ spa with stark lines and absence of color – we aimed to create just the opposite,” McAdams says. “Your surroundings absolutely have an impact on how your wellness journey can unfold and influence your daily life. The colors and textures that surround you mimic the vibe of the Texas Hill Country and pay homage to nature.”

The top-rated spa and resort is a far cry now from the place McAdams purchased on January 1, 1997. Located along the shores of scenic Lake Austin in the Texas Hill Country, the property had lived previous lives as a fishing camp, nudist enclave, rodeo ranch, and diet camp.

McAdams — at the time a commercial real estate developer for Dallas-based Trammell Crow — experienced a personal work-life-balance crisis that's wholly relatable in today's post-pandemic, "great-resignation" world two-and-a-half decades later.

“I was living on a plane, traveling a lot. It was high stress, and high energy and I loved it,” he says. “In 1984, I found a place that changed my life — the Ashram in Calabasas, California. It was a true bootcamp, with physical activities and dietary restrictions that were very intense… This experience forced me to come down from my hectic lifestyle of traveling, eating, drinking, and not exercising."

After adopting healthier habits in his own life, he and an LSU fraternity brother, Billy Rucks, seized an opportunity to buy and transform the Lake Austin Spa Resort; they still co-own it today. “It was a diamond in the rough," McAdams says.

More 25th anniversary offerings
One of the biggest challenges running the spa the last 25 years (besides navigating a global pandemic), McAdams says, has been continually evolving in an industry dominated by fleeting fads and headline-grabbing gimmicks.

“The changes in the last 25 years in the spa industry have been monumental,” McAdams says. “The global wellness industry is now a $4.5 trillion economy, with ‘spa’ being one small part of the bubble. We are all seekers looking for ways to look and feel our best, and I think the growth is due to a demand in wanting to take our health into our own hands.”

One of the resort’s newest touts (proudly stated on their home page) is that they’re Texas’ only destination spa on a lake. Recently they’ve introduced a full range of water activities, including a water taxi that transports guests to the spa and back.

“When we bought Lake Austin Spa Resort in 1997, our guests would put a toe in the water — but we’ve also evolved and now understand the power of being near a moving body of water and how it affects your health, happiness, and even alleviates depression,” McAdams says.

Along with the new fancy facials and lake programming, the resort has also added new classes and activities and upgraded amenities for its 25th anniversary. Befitting its location in the “live music capital of the world,” Austin-area musicians now entertain guests nightly around s’mores pits. There’s new artwork around the campus, too.

“My favorite part of celebrating our 25th anniversary this year has been to watch a very special piece of commissioned art be installed in the first few months of the year,” McAdams says. “A local Austin artist created a 64-foot long, 400-square foot abstract mural of stone, glass, and tile designed to honor our magnificent natural location on Lake Austin.

"Within the creation, I wanted to honor all of the amazing past and present people who helped get to where we are today. Their names are included in this mural, discreetly placed within this homage to nature. Because of these special people, Lake Austin Spa Resort has enjoyed many wonderful accolades through the years.”

---

To mark its 25th anniversary, Lake Austin Spa Resort is offering 25 percent off stays of at least two nights or more, through January 31, 2023. Reservations must be booked by October 31. Some packages include generous spa credits, but sadly, the $1,050 Regal facial is not 25 percent off. Find more information at www.lakeaustin.com.

Photo courtesy of Lake Austin Spa Resort

A red light mask is part of the $1,050 Regal by Valmont facial.

Photo courtesy of Rowan

Innovative new piercing studio needles into Fort Worth for Texas debut

Piercing news

A modern ear piercing company focused on the health and safety of clients has come to Texas via Fort Worth: Rowan opened at the Westbend complex on Wednesday, July 27.

The studio approaches piercing more like a minor medical procedure than a rite of passage performed at a shopping mall kiosk. Piercings at Rowan are performed only by licensed nurses who pierce with both hollow needles and single use piercing devices, they say.

Additionally, all earring designs are hypoallergenic, using only ethically sourced materials suited for freshly pierced ears, they say. That means pre-sterilized 14k gold or stainless steel and titanium. They do not use brass, nickel, or zinc in any of the earrings, nor do they use metals that can cause irritation, rashes, allergic reactions.

“We could not be more thrilled to open Rowan’s very first Texas studio to provide Texans with a celebratory and safe piercing experience,” says Rowan founder and CEO Louisa Serene Schneider in a release. “Ear piercing is essentially a medical procedure, and we pride ourselves in hiring our nurses, who are the experts, when it comes to skin integrity, infection prevention and keeping patients calm in unfamiliar situations. We can’t wait to celebrate our Texas customers.”

According to the website, Schneider founded Rowan in 2018 because she "observed first-hand that products and services that were labeled 'girly' weren’t paid much attention and especially, in the ear piercing industry the choices were limited to either an impersonal experience at the mall and tattoo parlors or an intimidating one at a doctor’s office."

The New York-based company now has locations in New York City, Connecticut, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, Georgia, New Orleans, South Carolina, and Fort Worth; they promise more coming soon (including one at La Cantera in San Antonio, the website says). They also have a partnership with Target, with several in-store locations across Dallas-Fort Worth.

Note that Rowan pierces only ears, but they'll do multiple piercings at one appointment. Prices are as follows: $35 for one piercing (device and needle piercing); $50 for two piercings (device piercing only) plus cost of piercing studs ($40-$60 per pair); $25 for a post downsize (needle piercing only).

The Westbend location is at 1653 River Run Road, Unit 141, Fort Worth. Hours are 10 am-7 pm Monday-Saturday and 11 am-6 pm Sunday.

For more information and appointment bookings, visit the website.

Rowan is a medically supervised piercing studio.

Photo courtesy of Rowan

Rowan is a medically supervised piercing studio.

Photo courtesy of H-E-B

H-E-B location leak leads this week's 5 most-read Fort Worth stories

This Week's Hot Headlines

Editor's note: A lot happened this week, so here's your chance to get caught up. Read on for the week's most popular headlines.

1. Location accidentally leaked for possible H-E-B supermarket in Fort Worth. On June 8, it was looking like Fort Worth was going to get an H-E-B grocery store, according to a press release from Parkside at Alliance Town Center that got nearby residents excited. An H-E-B spokesperson confirmed that the company owns land there but has no immediate plans to build a store. Then the developer backtracked and clarified that the news about H-E-B was "inadvertently included" in a release, adding that "H-E-B has not announced a store at this site nor a timeline for construction."

2. Charming Texas Gulf Coast community named one of the most affordable beach towns in U.S. Here's some welcome news for North Texans in search of a beach house that won't break the bank: A new report from Realtor.com says a popular Texas coastal town is among the most affordable in the country. Rockport, Texas, a coastal community about 375 miles from Fort Worth, lands at No. 7 on Realtor.com’s new list of most affordable beach towns in the country.

3. Dallas-Fort Worth nightclub owner gets 16 years for allowing coke sales in bathrooms. In what surely feels like an episode of Miami Vice, a Dallas-Fort Worth nightclub magnate was sentenced to 16 years in federal prison for operating an empire of clubs in which drugs were sold openly. According to a release from the office of Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham, drugs were being sold in the bathrooms at the OK Corral Fort Worth, OK Corral Dallas, and Far West nightclub.

4. 12 semifinalists make the cut in 2022 Cliburn Competition in Fort Worth. The field of competitors in the Sixteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition was cut to 12 semifinalists on June 6, meaning a dozen pianists were halfway to the grand prize of $100,000, a gold medal, and an international career. The semifinal rounds take place through the weekend, and the six finalists will be revealed Sunday night, June 12. Planning to go? Here are tips to have the best experience.

5. Target shoppers can get a $10 manicure from a robot at 2 Fort Worth stores. In a handy development for busy, budget-conscious, beauty-minded shoppers, Target has deployed a futuristic robot to give manicures inside two Fort Worth stores. Called Clockwork, the system is touted as the world's first fully autonomous nail-painting robot and is now up and running at Target Fort Worth Central (301 Carroll St.) and Target Cityview (5700 Overton Ridge Blvd.).

It's not official until H-E-B says so.

Photo courtesy of H-E-B

It's not official until H-E-B says so.

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'Yellowstone' stars to greet fans at Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo

Yellowstone news

Yellowstone fans, get your comfy shoes ready - there'll be a long line for this one. Cole Hauser a.k.a. "Rip Wheeler" on Yellowstone, and Taylor Sheridan, the show's co-creator, executive producer, and director of the series, will meet fans and sign autographs at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo.

The event will take place from 4:30-6:30 pm only on Friday, February 3. Location is the 6666 Ranch booth near the south end of Aisle 700 in the Amon G. Carter, Jr. Exhibits Hall.

According to a February 2 announcement from FWSSR, "fans will have the opportunity to snag an autograph as well as purchase some distinctive Yellowstone and 6666 Ranch merchandise while also enjoying all the features the Stock Show offers."

The event is free to attend (with paid Stock Show admission) and open to the public.

It's the second year in a row for Hauser to appear at FWSSR; in 2022, he and fellow cast mates drew huge crowds.

Sheridan, a Paschal High School graduate, is no stranger to Fort Worth; he lives in a ranch near Weatherford and filmed 1883, the prequel to Yellowstone, in and around Fort Worth. Currently, another spinoff, 1883: The Bass Reeves Story, is filming in North Texas.

The Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo is winding up its 2023 run on Saturday, February 4.

Morgan Wallen's ACMs concert tops this week's 5 hottest Fort Worth headlines

This week's hot headlines

Editor's note: A lot happened this week, so here's your chance to get caught up. Read on for the week's most popular headlines. Looking for the best things to do this weekend? Find that list here.

1. Country music bad boy Morgan Wallen headlines ACM Awards benefit show in Dallas-Fort Worth. Dallas-Fort Worth will be the center of the country music universe on May 11, when the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards are broadcast from The Star in Frisco. As with any worldwide, Super Bowl-level event, there'll be many happenings leading up to it. First up: a benefit concert headlined by Morgan Wallen.

2. Fort Worth's buzzy new Koe Wetzel's Riot Room pops open beer-can chicken. Koe has arrived: Koe Wetzel's Riot Room, a new Fort Worth bar and restaurant in which famed country singer-songwriter Koe Wetzel is partnered, has softly opened in the 7th Street district at 1100 Foch St., with live music and a food menu of Southern and Texas classics.

3. Meet the 9 rising star chefs heating up Fort Worth's food scene. While we count down to the big Tastemaker Awards party, we are getting to know the nominees in an editorial series leading up to the event. Up next, the category of Rising Star Chef of the Year. While most of these talented chefs are not new to the industry, many are newer to the local culinary scene or have new ventures. Here are the nominees.

4. Big week for music fans with news of a dozen concerts coming to Dallas-Fort Worth. For summer concert lovers in Dallas-Fort Worth, last week brought a bounty of good news with a big round of tours coming through Texas in 2023. Details have been revealed for tours featuring Drake, TLC, Christopher Cross, Steve Miller Band with Cheap Trick, Willie Nelson, and many more.

5. Where to eat: Best Fort Worth restaurants for Easter 2023 dining. Brunch has become a big trend, but it has always been a thing on Easter Sunday, when it's a tradition to hit up a brunch as a reward for attending Mass. It's such a thing that some restaurants in Fort Worth that are usually closed on Sundays open for special hours on this one holy day. Here's than where to get brunch (and dinner) on Easter Sunday in Fort Worth.

Heart health advocates raise over $800,000 at red-letter Fort Worth luncheon

Go Red for Women

What: Tarrant County Go Red for Women Luncheon benefiting American Heart Association

Where: Worthington Renaissance Hotel

The 411: The American Heart Association's annual Go Red for Women Luncheon is always one of the most anticipated fundraising luncheons of spring in Fort Worth. Nearly 1,200 patrons - decked out in red, of course - filled the Worthington's ballroom on March 3 to join the fight against cardiovascular disease.

Co-chairs leading the charge were Jennifer Chavez (Chief Nursing Officer at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth) and Becky Tucker (Senior Vice President of Channel Integration at Texas Health).

"Her Story is Our Story" was the theme of the 2023 luncheon, which raises awareness of heart disease in women - and guests heard the message repeatedly that it could happen to any woman they know or love.

While patrons dined on a heart-healthy lunch, emcee Morgan Young of WFAA facilitated a number of performances and presentations, including a spoken word performance by local artist Alicia Azahar and a choral rendition of "Stand By Me" by the Word of Truth choir from Texas Christian University.

Featured survivor Sheena Fannin shared her scary but inspirational experience with heart disease, and a memorable keynote address was given was Bean Gill, an entrepreneur and an inclusion and diversity expert. Joni Nash led an "Open Your Heart" moment that allowed patrons to raise their paddles and contribute directly to the cause. Entire tables were challenged to give, for a chance to receive a champagne toast and gift cards to Woodhouse Spa.

There was fun outside the ballroom, too. Fabulous silent auction items filled long tables in the foyer. During a pre-luncheon champagne reception, musicians from the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra serenaded guests, who were greeted by tiara-wearing Texas pageant title-holders, such as Miss Corpus Christi Sharity Brent and Miss Southeast Texas Meaghan Co.

Guests had the chance to take part in free health screenings, lip-print readings, hands-only CPR demonstrations, and more activations.

In total, the luncheon raised more than $800,000 toward the American Heart Association's lifesaving research, education, and health impact initiatives for women.

Who: More than 1,200 participants, survivors, organizers, patrons, and supporters including Brooke Berryman, Lindsey Lyons, Lisa Cobb, Kristin Jaworski, Nicole Maucere, Mary Robinson, Anita Rigues, Hannah Kopriva, Tracy WIlliams, Amanda Stallings,Nancey Murphy, Monika Mathur, Sherry Decker, Abbey Dudek, Jim Austin, and many more.

Tarrant County Go Red for Women luncheon 2023

Photo courtesy of AHA

Lisa Cobb, Kristin Jaworski, Nicole Maucere

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