Valentine’s Day is this week, so we’d though we’d use the holiday as an excuse to ask DASHA® co-founders and owners Dr. Darren Pollack and his wife Shannon how they met, how they fell in love, what inspired them to create DASHA®, and what their secret is to staying together – at work and at home! We interviewed them each separately. You won’t believe how Dr. Pollack proposed! Read below for their responses.
DASHA®: How did you meet?
DARREN: We met in the revolving door/portal of The Madison Belvedere. I was coming home from work as a single man. Once I went through the revolving door/portal of time and entered the building, I first laid eyes on my soul mate, and that’s when I instantly became a married man/husband/best friend/father of two. That particular night, I came home earlier than usual, and Shannon came home later than usual. Some might say it was meant to be.
SHANNON: I was sitting in the lobby of the Madison Belvedere on 29th and Madison. As the revolving doors went around, in walked the man in the yellow shirt! I had butterflies instantly. I knew it! I just knew it!
DASHA®: How and when did you know he or she was “the one”?
DARREN: That same day going through that revolving door, I instantly felt different. I felt like she had completed me. I had that true indescribable feeling that comes along once in a lifetime.
SHANNON: I experienced a terrible tragedy in my life when my brother passed. The first interaction I had with Darren, I mentioned how he reminded of my brother. He asked, “How old is he?” I answered and explained he had recently passed away. It was simple — the fact that he didn’t ask how he had died captured my heart. He just made me feel comfortable.
DASHA®: How, when and where did you propose/were you proposed to?
DARREN: May 25th, 2002 on a plane in front of all the passengers over the loudspeaker. We were on a week-long trip to Turks and Caicos. There were about 300 passengers on the plane. We became instantly famous and the vacation became a pre-honeymoon. I had the engagement ring and two cameras that she had no clue about. Sha’s best friend Blake was in on it and helped me plot it out. I’ll never forget when the process started with Blake, we had a quick conversation in Scoop on the Upper East Side. I was with Sha and we met up with one of her girlfriends — that’s when Blake and I exchanged numbers and the secret mission began.
SHANNON: I was proposed to on an airplane, flying over South Carolina. Row 1.
DASHA®: What is the secret to lasting love?
DARREN: Never go to sleep mad and always tell the truth, no matter what. Telling the truth is very tough at times and the other person may get very upset or mad. If the love is true, then this will only make the love stronger.
SHANNON: Laughter, honesty and intimacy.
DASHA®: How did the idea and vision for DASHA® come to you?
DARREN: The vision came to us when we were driving on 34th Street in Manhattan, and that vision became our mission.
SHANNON: It was always in me to create a special place where people can feel comfortable and accepted. Darren and I would always talk about our “what ifs” and put them down on paper. We felt that together we could create a vision that would one day become our mission.
DASHA®: You are part of a married couple who not only lives together, but also works together. Not every couple could do that. How do you manage to live and work together, and why does it work?
DARREN: Because we are always brutally honest with one another, and try to not take anything too seriously. We are realistic and uncensored while being unconditional.
SHANNON: A lot of individual therapy! No, seriously, it works because we are a team. We truly like each other. It takes a lot of patience and understanding to work together. DASHA® is a gift we created out of love, and it is our joy to share it each and every day. Sometimes we stop and look at DASHA® and are in awe of the many wonderful people we have had an opportunity to work with on their wellness journeys.
DASHA® wellness & spa is a luxury lifestyle brand and New York City-based wellness center created to offer a truly holistic approach to wellness. To learn more, visit dashawellness.com.
