This may be the best blog post we’ve ever written. After our interview with Alexi and Marco, the founders of DFW Young and Social, we knew we had struck gold. This organization embodies everything we stand for as a blog: it’s meaningful, inclusive, community-centered, and most importantly, fun—one of the best ways to get out of your house, meet new people, and make friends in Dallas!

As longtime DFW residents, we know it can be SOOOOO HARD to make friends in Dallas as an adult. Except that’s not true anymore!

With DFW Young and Social—the EASY way to make friends in Dallas—it’s more than possible! DFW YAS gave us not one, not two, but three new friends who match our adventurous spirits, and we couldn’t be more grateful!

How to Make Friends in Dallas

So, what exactly is DFW Young and Social?

DFW YAS is a group that hosts weekly (and sometimes daily) events that help club members create strong bonds. The official clubhouse—and most of the events—are in Farmer’s Branch. However, the club has hundreds of members from all over DFW. And, becoming a member is completely FREE!

That’s right: this club is the ultimate Good Time on a Dime! Even the paid events are extremely affordable. So, if you are in DFW and young(ish), social and maybe broke(ish), keep reading.

Here’s What’s Up Dallas!

Table of Contents

• Our Experience
• Brief History and Interview:
  • What’s the story behind DFW Young and Social?
  • What do you love most about DFW YAS?
  • How does DFW YAS adds to the broader DFW community? 
  • What do you hope people feel after they leave a DFW YAS event? 
  • What is your vision for DFW Young and Social? 
• Basic Information
• Events and Programs
• Absolutely Need To Know
• Why We Chose DFW Young and Social
• Conclusion

Make Friends in Dallas: Our Experience!

Our experience with DFW YAS has been nothing short of amazing! We only discovered this group last winter, right before one of our dear friends, Vinoda, moved halfway across the country. Before she left for her new job, we were dead set on having one last amazing day together. That’s when we stumbled upon a Winter Holiday Masquerade Ball hosted by DFW YAS.

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Brief History and Founder Interview

Alexi and Marco are the proud founders of this club. It officially began in October 2021, but it has been steadily building and expanding ever since. To learn even more about the history, the passion, the goals and guiding principles of the organization, let’s hear from Alexi.

Can you tell me the story behind DFW Young and Social? 

Alexi: 

Absolutely! Back when I lived in California, I ran a social group just for fun for about two years, and it helped me make great connections! I had a really good experience doing that. So, when I moved to Texas at the tail end of 2019, I was like, ‘Great, I’m gonna do it again!’ The timing was a bit off, though, because I started the group in February 2020. I thought, this is gonna be wonderful. We started going hiking and doing other things. Then, of course, March 2020 happened. I was like, ‘Oh shoot…’

When things began opening up again in the Fall of 2021, I had all these ideas and a lot of pent-up energy. I was ready to go, so I started organizing one or two meetups a month—hiking, movies, different activities like that.

Eventually, I started teaching dance, because that’s my professional background. People had started asking me, “When are you going to start teach us to dance?” And I thought, ‘You don’t have to ask me twice. I will do that.’

Around that time, Marco showed up at my second-ever event. We were friends for a while. And about the time we started dating, Marco got on board with helping organize, which is kind of Marco’s specialty.

Marco: 

Yeah, it was April 2022 when I really started helping out a lot. It was during the third workshop. For me, I’d been in Dallas for about nine years, and I’ve had multiple jobs.

I started off with Southwest Airlines and ended up moving to a company called Ericsson. But when you move jobs, when you get out of relationships, basically, you lose either half your friends or all your friends. So, I constantly had to find new people, and I thought, ‘There needs to be a better way to this. There needs to be a middle ground.’

When I started going to meet- ups more often, Alexi’s group always stood out because it wasn’t just like, ‘We’ll meet here and we might talk or… no one might show up, right?’ She was organized and present at every single event. She made sure to talk to every single person. 

When I came on board in terms of organizing, I thought, ‘This can be so much more. And I want it to be so much more.’ So, we started to do more and more events. I also wanted to make sure she could follow her passion, which is dance instruction.

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Basic Information

• Location: DFW YAS Clubhouse – 2309 Springlake Rd Suite 600, Farmers Branch, TX 75234
• Clubhouse Hours: Varies based on events. Events happen almost daily, usually after work hours on weekdays and throughout the day on weekends.
• Link to Event Calendar: https://www.dfwyas.com/event-calendar
• Age Requirement: 18+
• Pricing as of 2024:
  • Single events are either $15 or FREE!
  • If you buy a bundle of events, the price goes down!
    • For Example: Buying a dance lesson 10 pack drops the price from $15 per class to $7.50 per class. Pretty great, right?! There are dance bundles, event packs, monthly packs, etc.
  • Membership to DFW YAS is free99, so don’t get confused. Think of these optional memberships as advanced bundles/ patreon tiers that support the club and help you get the most out of your experience should you choose to sign up.
    • Bronze: $100 Monthly, ten classes or events per month ($10 per check-in)
    • Silver: $135 Monthly, fifteen classes or events per month ($9 per check-in)
    • Gold: $160 Monthly, twenty classes or events per month ($8 per check-in)
  • Lastly, please remember that classes and events vary in pricing and are subject to change. For updated pricing, visit the website.

What is the thing you love most about DFW Young and Social? 

Marco: 

I’ve always branded myself on one thing, and I can thank Southwest Airlines for this. It’s that everything that you do needs to be meaningful. When you talk to someone, when you help a customer, when you turn in a product, whatever it is… you have to have a meaningful intention behind it. What I love about this group and the culture and the people around it is that everyone here wants to make a meaningful connection.

You see it in all our branding very often because I believe it. It’s part of my own ethos. So, even though, sometimes, I can be at the front, or other times in different areas watching the club’s interactions, I get to see those connections being made. That’s why I love DFW Young Social!

Alexi: 

I agree. You get to see those connections building in real time. You get people who come in and they’re brand new, either to the area or just coming off of some big life change, or something like that. They come in and it sounds a little cheesy maybe, but you kind of see them start to blossom. People come in and at first, they’re closed off. And then, a few weeks later, they’re like, ‘Oh, it’s okay. People aren’t judging me. There aren’t a bunch of like social tripwires or something. I can just relax.’

I think that’s something I really love about this. When you set a tone of having things be very welcoming, be very inclusive, be very friendly, you attract the people who resonate with that and they remain.

Just more broadly, I think we have so many people from so many different backgrounds, places, religions, viewpoints, all of that. But there’s just this feeling of unity and focusing on what is shared. And that’s important.

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Types of Events and Programs

Dance Classes

Salsa | West Coast Swing | Bachata | Country Two-Step | Foxtrot | Lindyhop | Traditional Waltz | Samba | Viennese Waltz | Argentine Tango | East Coast Swing | Private Lessons | Dance Socials

Note: These might be labeled a little differently on the DFW Young and Social Website, but it’s all there! Check it out!

How do you think DFW Young and Social adds to the broader DFW community? 

Alexi: 
Across society as a whole, but also in DFW, there is a bit of a gap in structured social organizations. There are some other social clubs, but they’re very expensive. Really, there’s a lot of barriers to entry for people. It kind of rankles with my sense of… my purpose in doing it.

Marco: 

We’re thinking about keeping everything as low as possible in terms of cost. For a country club, or even other business- oriented social clubs, you’re paying thousands of dollars a year, not including the initiation fee. And then, you’re also paying to go to the events. So, it’s not open, which in itself, for me, creates a culture of it being about the money… and exclusivity. 

It works for some people, but it doesn’t help the broader DFW community, right? That’s why we will always keep any of our memberships optional and all of our events will always be public. Keep it as low as possible. Let people find which option they resonate with the most… and then, let the culture grow and have a good bubble of community around that. 

Alexi: 

Now that we have an actual physical location, it’s really neat. When we have events going, people can just come in and hang out. If they wanna come for a particular event, they might even come in early, they’ll work, and hang out here. We have thoughts, in the future, potentially, of having a co-working space at certain times so that people can come in and just have that work-from-home, but not alone atmosphere.

 Marco: 

Since it’s so new… two months since we’ve had this space, we’ve seen it become more and more of that. Last Sunday was the first time we got to see all of our space in action. We had a crafting class, as well as a dance class in the big room.

Then, we had a secondary group that reached out to us through the Discord that wanted to do a DnD (Dungeons and Dragons) campaign in the smaller, front room as well. So, it was alive. It was really fun. And then, as people were leaving class or leaving their activity, they would stop and talk to the other group. They would say things like, “Oh, I never knew this is what DnD was like!” Everyone was laughing and everyone was participating. It was a whole new thing! 

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Absolutely Need To Know

Believe it not, DFW YAS actually outlines everything you ABSOLUTELY NEED TO KNOW on their website, literally on the first page. But to make it extra easy for you, we’ve put all four steps here too!

1. Step 1: Sign Up
   • Create Your Free Membership Account to unlock access to RSVP to our free events/classes. As well as paid events and classes.
2. Step 2: Explore Events
   • Explore 60+ Classes/Events Monthly, browsing a diverse range of activities including dance, fitness classes, crafts, board games nights, hikes, exploring the city, etc.
3. Step 3: Reserve Your Spot
   • RSVP in the Member System Calendar to register for events that pique your interest and secure your spot. Free events are included for check in and paid events will require ticket purchase.
4. Step 4: Participate and Enjoy
   • Join the DFWYAS Discord Server to connect before events! You can also sign up for the monthly newsletter (highly recommended) to see those events in your inbox. Whatever you do, just make sure to show up for your registered and enjoy yourself!

Good Time on a Dime!

Like we mentioned earlier, DFW YAS definitely qualifies as a Good Time on a Dime! With free and $15 events, the club is financially accessible, and we love to see it! This welcoming community is designed for everyone over 18, with no strict age limit, which is a big relief for those of us who are no longer in our twenties. The target demographic is people under 40, and sometimes you can get an idea of who all is coming to an event by taking a peek at the Meetup Group (which has almost 6000 members)!

If you’re trying to minimize your notifications and are deciding between joining the Meetup group, the newsletter, or the Discord, Choose Discord. We only have notifications turned on for announcements, and it’s perfect. We’re the first to know about any changes, and it’s especially helpful for events that are subject to weather, like hiking. All the events are posted there too! Just joining the server will be enough to immerse you in the community and help you take advantage of everything DFW YAS has to offer.

What do you hope people feel after they leave a DFW Young and Social event? 

Alexi: 

It’s going to sound simple, but… just that they’ve had a good time! But also, we just hope that it felt natural to connect with people, as much as it can. Obviously, not everyone is going to feel as comfortable at any given moment connecting with people, but we hope that the structure of our events worked for them, rather than against them… so they didn’t feel like they didn’t know how to initiate conversation. There was something that they could do here, some little activity, some loose direction that allowed it to just feel natural. 

Marco: 

I agree. I always hope that they felt safe in two senses of the word. Safe, yes, that you’re in an area where someone is always going to be there to support you. But secondly, even if you weren’t comfortable, or even if you didn’t talk to anyone, or you talked to just one person, you’d feel like, ‘Okay, this was out of my comfort zone, but I can come back and try again. It’s okay. I’m not being judged just for not talking.’ 

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Why We Chose DFW Young And Social

We’re going to keep this really short, because we think the interview illustrates exactly why we chose to cover DFW Young and Social. Not only have we had a wonderful experience with DFW YAS ourselves, but we know it’s helped so many other people in the DFW area. We’ve seen the organization grow rapidly, and through it all, they’ve maintained their core principles and focus on community. We’re so impressed with how much DFW YAS has to offer, and we’re excited to see them continue to grow!

Final Question: What is your vision for DFW Young and Social? 

Alexi: 

I want to see that sense of community building, and building, and building, and I want to add more and more avenues for people’s passions. I would like to get to the point where no matter what you’re passionate about, there’s something here that you can do with that. And maybe you’re the one leading it! But then, you can get other people involved in that. Because I think that’s something else we’re very passionate about. This group is very much a creation… a co-creation… of both of us together, obviously, but also, with members as well, and the whole community growing it together. 

Marco: 

That’s specifically why I opened up that Discord channel called Create Together. Come with your ideas. Let’s see what we can do. And to touch on something Alexi said earlier… finding events can be a little bit difficult at times. Eventbrite has hundreds. Allevents has thousands. But, to be able to just drop in and something’s going on is amazing to me.

We had a book club the other day and someone new came in off the street. They saw our place, they saw that we were open, and they decided to just drop in and see what was going on. They didn’t know there was a book club and didn’t know what we were reading. It was great! They were just enthralled the whole time as we were explaining the book in detail. 

Alexi: 

One thing that’s really cool is because of the range of events we have, we bridge that gap between people who’ve been here a long time and people who haven’t. Sometimes, that can be hard, I think. You might have a meet-up and everyone who comes in will be new and they’ll connect with the other new people, which is good, but to get them to connect with people who have been here their whole lives, is really neat! They can become much more intertwined in the community, which is great! 

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Conclusion

Our chat with Alexi and Marco from DFW Young and Social left us genuinely excited about what they’re creating. It’s clear that this group is more than just a way to meet new people; it’s a chance to dive into the DFW community and make unforgettable memories. Whether you’re looking to dance, craft, or just hang out with like-minded people, DFW YAS has something for everyone—and at a price that won’t break the bank. Get involved and experience the joy for yourself!

If you’ve ever felt like there isn’t a great structure for community past when you’re in college, this is the answer. Join DFW YAS to add a bit of magic to your everyday life and connect with others who share your interests. We can’t recommend it enough.

And if you want to discover more community events, check out our Renaissance Faire post and subscribe to our mailing list to learn even more about What’s Up in Dallas! 😉