Four of Denver's top tourism leaders have been named to the new class of inductees into the 15th Annual Denver & Colorado Tourism Hall of Fame.

They are: Denver catering king and philanthropist Larry DiPasquale, Denver March Powwow executive director Grace Gillette, Colorado Rockies owner Dick Monfort and director of the Greenway Foundation Jeff Shoemaker with a posthumous award to his father, Joe Shoemaker, the foundation's founder.

These city and state supporters will be honored during the Tourism Industry Hall of Fame dinner March 20 at the Seawell Ballroom.

The Tourism Hall of Fame serves as the highest award for Denver's travel industry, which logged its best year ever in 2012 with 13.6 million overnight visitors generating more than $3.6 billion in spending. The industry supports 50,000 jobs in the metro area.

The gala is a fundraising event for the Visit Denver Foundation, which has given out more than $545,000 in scholarships to 214 Colorado students pursuing higher education in the fields of tourism and hospitality.

For ticket information, contact Joni Watkins at jwatkins@visitdenver.com or call 303-571-9481.

Burger nod to Sochi

In honor of the Winter Olympics, Lucky Strike, an upscale bowling alley chain, has created the Soch-eezy Burger a hand-packed, all-beef patty rubbed with thyme and roasted garlic, topped with melted Swiss cheese and a creamy mushroom stroganoff sauce served on a toasted ciabatta roll.

The burger, the chain's February Burger of the Month, was created by Lucky Strike Denver chef Francisco Quintana. The Soch-eezy Burger will be sold in all venues (except San Francisco and Polaris) through Feb. 28. Lucky Strike Lanes has two venues in Colorado: The Denver Pavilions downtown and at Belmar in Lakewood.

The Burger of the Month program celebrates Lucky Strike's 10th anniversary. At the end of the year, the top-selling specialty burger will be added to the Lucky Strike menu for 2015. For more information, visit www.bowlluckystrike.com/menu.

Troy Guard's steakhouse delayed

Because of construction delays, Guard and Grace (1801 California), the much-anticipated steakhouse from super chef Troy Guard (TAG, TAG Raw Bar, TAG Burger Bar, Los Chingones, Sugarmill) will not open on Feb. 13 as planned. The restaurant's opening has been pushed back to early March. Valentine's Day diners who had reservations at Guard and Grace will be welcomed at TAG restaurant.

Wheat Ridge stretch needs snappy name

A group of Wheat Ridge retailers needs your help to select a catchy, memorable name to brand themselves.

The collection of unique shops, which are located on West 29th Avenue between Sheridan and Fenton, includes newcomers West 29th Restaurant & Bar, People's Market and Twisted Smoothie, as well as mainstays Wheat Ridge Poultry and Meat.

Stop by any of these merchants during the month of February and vote for a name from a field of six that the shops have selected. Or, feel free to thrown in your own suggestion. You could win a gift certificate just for participating.

'Extreme Weight Loss' casting call

Hello, my building's gym. Why did we ever break up?

If you, like me, are struggling with New Year's weight-loss resolutions, ABC's hit series "Extreme Weight Loss" is holding an open casting call between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Feb. 15 at the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center, 12348 E. Montview Blvd., in Aurora.

With the rising rates of obesity in America, the show says it is extremely important for everyone to know about this opportunity to get healthy and lose weight.

"Extreme Weight Loss" documents the makeover of courageous obese people who, in 365 days, set out to safely lose half their body weight and ultimately reveal an amazing metamorphosis.

Trainer and transformation specialist Chris Powell guides each of the selected participants through their journey. By assuring that they have the proper nutrition and exercise, Powell helps individuals whose lives have become out of control because of the weight.

More fitness

Speaking of weight loss, "The Biggest Loser" fitness expert Jillian Michaels kicks off her Maximize Your Life tour on March 11 in Denver.

You can get $4 off tickets with the code JMLIVE. For more information, visit www.jillianmichaelslive.com/.

Seen and heard:

Eavesdropping on a man's Facebook post: "I just watched my Facebook movie. I want my money back."

Penny Parker's "Mile High Life" column gives insights into the best events, restaurants, businesses, parties and people throughout the metro area. Parker also writes for Blacktie-Colorado.com. You can subscribe and read her columns (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) at www.blacktie-colorado.com/pennyparker. She can be reached at penny@blacktie-llc.com or at 303-619-5209.