Mary Jones

Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Plano was honored with a customized portrait of staff who helped 88-year-old Mario Cortez pull through COVID-19. Susie Cortez, a nationally recognized artist, created the painting.
“Before putting brush to canvas, I thought of the Justice League, where you see Superman and Wonder Woman and all the superheroes standing in solidarity,” said Susie Cortez, a fine art consultant and well-known visual artist, in an interview with Texas Health Resources. “That’s wh...

Recent bans over Delta 8 THC are causing an uproar among some small business owners.
Due to current bans on THC products, Texas ranked number 49 on a list showing where each state throughout the country stood with marijuana users overall.
The newer Delta 8 THC products have been gaining popularity lately. For this reason, many vape and smoke shops included it in their product assortment. Some even opened stores dedicated to only selling Delta 8.
Now, small businesses which derive their entire...

After her own first-hand experience with homelessness, Holly Jackson, founder and creator of Walls of Love, understood the struggle of not being able to get essential items that one may need. Walls of Love are pop-up walls that provide items such as hygienic products, non-perishable foods, school supplies and winter apparel which are hooked on a chain-link fence for those in need.
Holly mentioned she started the organization in order to help those who truly needed it.
“Specifically in the beg...

The month of August is known as Breastfeeding Awareness Month and serves as an opportunity to bring breastfeeding into the spotlight.
An infant’s first year is vital for many milestones pertaining to their growth. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that women breastfeed for at least the first six months entirely to give their baby the best nutrients possible because breastmilk provides all their nutritional needs.
“Breastfeeding is really important because it is really the biologic...

The homicide investigation for Christian Quezada is still continuing after his body was found in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
“He was killed in the most tragic, horrific, and inhumane way,” said one of Quezada’s closest friends from high school. “The conditions that his body was left did not match what the police said at first.”
The family had to put pressure on the police and speak with the mayor before Quezada’s death was investigated as a homicide.
Quezada had been renting a room at an AirBnB. H...

For the families on Cleveland Drive, July 19th started off like any other day. However, the afternoon would soon show it was not.
The first reports said the house exploded due to a gas leak in the home. However, now police say Joseph Kupfer is said to have been attempting suicide based on a suicidal note found during a search of the remains of the home, as well as the burners on the stove being switched to on mode.
The explosion destroyed Kupfer’s home and many surrounding ones, many of which...

COVID-19 cases are beginning to rise again as more potent and contagious variants emerge throughout the county. In Texas, doctors are seeing more patients becoming hospitalized due to the virus, but most of them have not received the vaccine.
“The vast majority of people that we are seeing that are getting covid are unvaccinated,” said Dallas County Medical Society President Dr. Beth Kassanoff-Piper.
She gave an estimated 99 percent to 1 percent ratio of vaccinated to unvaccinated who were ge...

In Fort Worth, Texas, a gunman is dead after being killed by landscaping bricks thrown at him by a group of people that he was shooting at. Police said the man shot into the crowd after an argument ensued in the early morning hours on Monday during an assemblage in a backyard.
The gunman killed one, with three other victims sent to the hospital. Police informed of a shooting happening at 5600 Shiloh Drive, arriving to multiple gunshot victims due to the gunman shooting into the crowd.
The inf...

This is a bold statement to make, so let me explain.
Yes, it’s true. I did become a single mother twice in these last two years. But how could that be?
Let’s start from the beginning. My marriage started in a whirlwind. First, I was pregnant with my daughter as I wobbled down the aisle donning a white strapless dress. This, of course, wasn’t my ideal wedding but I didn’t want to have another baby out of wedlock.
So, we went to a wedding while I was pregnant. I was going to get married to my n...

With the rising variants of COVID-19 lurking throughout the country again, Dallas County’s progress in reaching Herd immunity may diminish. Steve Miff, Ph.D., President and CEO of Parkland Center for Clinical Innovation, explains precisely what Herd immunity means.
“The term ‘herd immunity’ describes a situation where a high enough percentage of the population is immune to an infection that the infectious organism can no longer circulate at high enough levels and continue infecting people. Th...

Violence rage between drivers has risen to dangerous numbers across the country. Texas has seen numerous homicides due to road rage incidents.
“Aggressive driving has unfortunately become commonplace, which has led to aggressive acts such as criminal mischief, assault, aggravated assault, and murder,” said Senior Corporal Brian Martinez of the Dallas Police Department.
Martinez said many cases of road rage that escalate are due to drivers taking matters too personally and that we should learn...

One of the first brick-faced houses, the Saigling House in Plano, Texas has been honored to be included on the National Register Of Historic Places.
“Texas historical commission has also recognized it, so we have designations at local, state, and national level,” said Liz Del Turco, Senior Park Planner for the Plano Parks and Recreations Department.
“That is important to the community at large to have the city participate in these designations and in the endeavor to maintain these places and ...

The North Texas Chapter of Make A Wish has been granting critically ill children wishes since 1982. They have hit a milestone of over 12,000 wishes granted.

“We are incredibly excited and proud of the more than 12,000 wishes we have granted across North Texas! A wish experience can be a game-changer for a child with a critical illness. This one belief guides us in everything we do at Make A Wish. It inspires us to grant wishes that change the lives of the kids we serve,” Sara Roelke Communica...

In society, I am considered a passable black women.
Many times I get confused for being Caucasian.
At first glance, you probably wouldn’t guess my biological father is black. In the same contrast, you probably wouldn’t be surprised my biological mom is white. I am one of those mixed gals; one of the girls with ‘the good hair’.
Race has always been something I’ve struggled with. As a young girl, I used to dream of having hair that was bone straight, like many of my friends had. I never knew ho...

But It Doesn’t Have To Be Activated
Growing up as a bi-racial girl in a predominately white community, mental health whispers were always commonplace. Many times, a classmate was dealing with depression or what I now recognize as anxiety. We would comment they were acting crazy again, unaware of the mental health concern there was.
I would have been categorized in the same ‘crazy’ box if anyone had noticed. I went as far as taking a required anger management class due to some outbursts that f...