Yogis Say What?

Lululemon at NorthPark Center takes oddly aggressive stance against Dallas charity

The windows at Lululemon Athletica in NorthPark Center are attracting more attention than usual thanks to an oddly worded advertisement: "We do partners yoga, not partners card," the window reads. It's an obvious reference to the flagship fundraiser for the Family Place, a beloved Dallas charity that provides support for battered women and children.

What's less clear is why Lululemon has a beef with Partners Card. The $70 card purchase goes directly to the Family Place, and card holders in turn receive a 20 percent discount in October and November from participating retailers — a long list that doesn't include Lululemon.

Although the company isn't participating in the standard sense, a representative insists it is working with Family Place. After customers expressed concern on Facebook and posted photos of the window, Lululemon posted the following statement on Facebook.

The intention behind the window decal was to share our love for yoga, not to offend our community. Although we choose not to participate in Partner's Card, we choose to give back in a different way. We are working in collaboration with Family Place to offer the gift of yoga, and what we can create together.

We reached out to Family Place to see if there is an existing relationship with Lululemon and what it might entail, and Paige Flink emailed the following statement:

Every Partners Card we sell at the Family Place provides a night of safety and shelter for victims of family violence. We understand that not every retailer can give the 20% discount, but we are thankful for the hundreds who do and for the thousands of donors who buy a card. We look forward to working out a way Lululemon can join our important mission to end violence in the homes of Dallas County.

For more on this issue, read Lululemon tries to make amends after lying about existing Family Place partnership.

unspecified

Free Food

Food Bank to host summer food giveaway at UNT Dallas campus

Photo by Michael Martin

undefined

Two Dallas organizations are partnering on a big summer food giveaway: The North Texas Food Bank is joining forces with the University of North Texas at Dallas (UNT Dallas) with a mobile food distribution event at the UNT Dallas campus on Friday, July 18.

UNT Dallas and the NTFB already host a drive-through mobile pantry each month, but this one is specifically focused on children who are out of school for the summer.

Each participating family will receive about 60 pounds of food, including fresh produce, to help fill the gap left when school-provided meals are unavailable.

So far this year, the monthly mobile pantry events at UNT Dallas have provided approximately 140,000 pounds of food to more than 1,500 families and 7,000 people. Long lines usually form on University Hills Blvd. well before the gates open.

UNT Dallas has partnered with NTFB since 2020, hosting monthly mobile food distributions on campus. Each event is supported by student, faculty, and staff volunteers, providing relief to campus and community members. The university also operates the Trailblazers Care Pantry, an on-campus resource that provides groceries, hygiene products, and a Career Closet for students preparing for interviews or internships.

A recent Feeding America study found that Texas has the highest number of food-insecure people of any state, and the Dallas-Fort Worth area ranks third in the nation. Within NTFB’s 12-county service area, nearly 744,000 people, including more than 250,000 children, don’t always know where their next meal will come from. Over 60 percent of that population lives in Dallas County.

The July 18 food distribution is first-come, first-served, and no ID or pre-registration is required. Participants must arrive in a vehicle, as this is a drive-through-only event. It'll run from 8-11 am, or while supplies last, at the UNT Dallas campus in southern Dallas, at 7300 University Hills Blvd.

charity