An irresistible face, spotted high above a downtown Dallas street, sparked an awesome blind date this month — and a beautiful reminder about the power of connection.
Brandon Handy had glanced out the fourth-floor windows of The Dallas Morning News building a million times. The only life he and his HR colleagues had ever spotted inside the historic art deco building’s lofts was a pair of caged birds.
So Brandon lost his mind when he looked across Jackson Street and saw an eager dog, brown splotches on his white fur, with his nose pressed against the glass, watching the world below.
For the next week, Brandon and his colleagues, all passionate about dogs, devoted their work breaks to window-watching. Although they could see no farther than just beyond the glass, they realized the dog liked the spot.
They christened him “Toby,” then had a better idea. Brandon placed a sign in a window opposite the apartment: “What is your dog’s name?” they asked.
The next day a message appeared across the street. “His name is Patches.” A conversation had begun.
Posted on multiple rectangles of printer paper, the HR team wrote: “Hi, Patches! Everyone at The Dallas Morning News wants you to know you are a good boy. P.S. You’re super cute!”
The response: “Thank you. He loves attention. Would you like for us to bring him over to meet everyone?”
Is there any doubt what the answer was? Even those of us grinding to meet a writing deadline couldn’t resist this love story and the chance to meet Patches.
Whether downtown or in the suburbs, dogs are often how connections are made. We have neighbors whose names we don’t know — but we can tell you their dogs’ names. Hash Brown, Dakota, Lola, Sherlock. Few can pass by a goofy carefree canine without their day becoming a bit better.
Dogs transcend our differences. They don’t care who you voted for or how big your paycheck is. Their encounters always seem to go like this: “Hey, how you doing? You looking at me?”
Brandon oversaw a few more exchanges with Patches’ “communications team” as details were set for the dog to meet his fast-multiplying fan club in front of The News building.
As 12:30 p.m. approached, we had no idea who would come around the corner with Patches. All Brandon knew was, “I reached out my hand, and our neighbor shook it.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Patches’ owner, DJ Loggins, was as open-hearted and curious as his pet — although he admitted he was initially overwhelmed by the size of the crowd. He had seen a half dozen HR employees waving to him and Patches the day before; more than 30 of us greeted the pair in person.
Staffers from departments companywide oohed and aahed while lining up to pet Patches and take a selfie. “He is just a big lover boy,” DJ said. “He loves the attention.”
Brandon, a self-described Doggo Fren who has his own Piper and Ripley, knows his way around a pet supply store. He showed Patches the contents of two bags of treats and toys while DJ told me the doggie in the window story from the perspective of himself and his husband, JC.
The couple knew The News was headquartered in the building across the street from their home in the Lone Star Gas Lofts. When they saw the HR staff’s question about Patches’ name, DJ’s first thought was, “Oh my gosh, I didn’t realize y’all could see into our place. And two, I didn’t realize he had a fan following.”
The Logginses moved downtown from Oak Lawn earlier this year and say Harwood Park is Patches’ favorite outdoor spot.
He has been part of the Loggins family for seven years. JC rescued the Pyrenees-husky mix when he was a puppy and he became a younger brother to the couple’s dachshund, Nigel, who passed away in February.
Patches was amazingly patient with the onslaught of newspaper groupies, especially since this was only his second time in a crowd. In April, the Logginses took Patches to the Texas Gay Rodeo Association’s Texas Tradition Rodeo.
“He was a favorite with everyone, just like today,” DJ said. “With Nigel gone, we are trying to get him out socializing more.”
Brandon and his HR colleagues had stumbled on a dog exuding star power — a million-watt smile, old-soul eyes and never-met-a-stranger glee.
Reluctantly, staffers gave the dog one last good scratch and offered whispers of “Goodbye, Patches.” Had it not been for the miserable heat and humidity, we might still be spoiling him rotten in front of our building.
I’m always a sucker for a sweet dog, but this encounter stirred deeper emotions. It took me back to the pandemic when residents, whether downtown or in my neighborhood, endeavored to spread neighborly goodwill through their windows. Amid the isolation of COVID’s distancing mandates, we posted messages of hope, inspiration and humor.
My colleague Claire Ballor flashed back, too. “Those signs happened during the pandemic because we needed connection, but we still do,” she said.
We’ve reverted to so many of our old ways, living with our heads buried in our routines and screens. This newer isolation is worse than in the time of COVID-19 because it’s of our own making.
Patches’ story tells of the beauty available in authentic connection. And, as Claire said, it’s a reminder of how a little effort pays off big.
When I checked in with DJ and JC later that day, their reaction was similar. Although JC was at work and couldn’t be a part of Patches’ big adventure, he spotted the initial message.
“I was intrigued,” he said, “but not surprised because I know how special Patches is, and you can see it even on the other side of the glass.”
Although the back-and-forth could appear nothing more than a lark, the Loggins said, it has reinforced for them the goodness — and good people — of Dallas.
“So many people these days are so tensed up,” DJ said. “It’s nice to have a situation where people are just being neighbors — to know that kind of community feeling still exists.”
As we talked, Patches snuggled between JC and DJ and slept off his midday excitement. “He’s been with us so long now,” JC said. “He’s a part of our relationship. A binding force.”
Since moving into the high-rise, DJ has regularly cleaned the nose art Patches leaves on the window but he hadn’t given much thought to what his beloved pet saw. Now he looks out knowing he, JC and Patches have a building full of neighbors across the street.
“Check out our latest message,” he texted me a few days ago. On the window was a caricature of the dog’s face and the words “Patches loves Dallas Morning News.”
In these summer months, I hope each of you finds a Patches story in your own neighborhood.
