THE PARADE THAT FED 724,029 NORTH TEXANS AND THE DALLAS BROKERAGE BEHIND IT

PARK CITIES, Texas, Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- On America's 250th birthday, the corner of Lakeside and Beverly did what it has done for twenty-three years. This time it added up to $67,216, and the receipt was written in meals.

The Agency Dallas served as title sponsor of the 2026 Park Cities Fourth of July Parade for the third consecutive year. The Agency Dallas is an independently owned and operated real estate brokerage in Dallas, led by broker-owners Damon and Megan Williamson. The 2026 parade raised $67,216 for the North Texas Food Bank. Applied through the Food Bank and amplified by matching gifts, the campaign provided 724,029 meals for North Texas families. The parade is produced by the Rotary Club of Park Cities and ran its 23rd year on July 4, 2026.

"We are not a corporate satellite office writing a check from someone else's budget. The Agency Dallas is independently owned and operated, which means when we put our name at the top of this parade, it is our name and our money. That is the whole point. You should be able to walk up to the people whose sign is on the banner."
Damon Williamson, Broker/Owner, The Agency Dallas

WHAT HAPPENED ON JULY 4, 2026

The 2026 parade landed on the semiquincentennial, America's 250th birthday, and the Rotary Club of Park Cities built the morning around it. Lineup began at 7:30 a.m. at Highland Park Town Hall. The parade stepped off at 9 a.m. and ran north on Lakeside Drive, west on Beverly Drive, north on Preston Road to University Boulevard, then east into Centennial Park, where post-parade festivities opened around 9:30 a.m.

Retired U.S. Navy Adm. Patrick M. Walsh, PhD, served as Grand Marshal. Walsh flew combat missions in Operation Desert Storm and Operation Provide Comfort, flew with the Blue Angels, rose to command the U.S. Pacific Fleet, and helped direct the American response to Japan's 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Since 2022 he has been president of Cristo Rey Dallas. A Jesuit Dallas alumnus, he rode a route lined with the schools that raised him.

A Navy JROTC color guard presented the colors at the gazebo. Rotary Club President Mark Kashar told the crowd that the club had met its three-million-meal goal ahead of schedule and was raising the target to five million.

University Park council members rode in honor of the girls lost in the Hill Country floods a year earlier, a quiet minute in a loud morning.

WHERE THE $67,216 WENT, AND HOW IT BECAME 724,029 MEALS

The North Texas Food Bank has been the parade's primary beneficiary since 2016. Its published conversion rate is one dollar to three meals, the Food Bank's purchasing power at scale, not a rounding trick. Sponsorship dollars from the parade go into that pipeline, where corporate and foundation matching gifts multiply them further.

That is why the two headline numbers do not divide evenly into each other. The $67,216 is what the 2026 parade raised in total. The 724,029 meals is what that campaign produced once those dollars moved through the Food Bank alongside matching support. Both numbers are real. Neither one is the other one multiplied by three.

The Food Bank serves a 12-county, 9,200-square-mile region of North Texas. Its clients are not abstract: they are households in Dallas, Collin, Denton and nine surrounding counties where a single car repair decides whether there is dinner on Thursday.

WHY A PARADE IS WORTH THIS MUCH TO A NEIGHBORHOOD

It is fair to ask what a two-hour parade actually does. Four things, and they compound.

1. It is the only event that reaches everyone. There is no ticket, no table, no minimum gift. Highland Park, University Park, and the neighborhoods that feed into them show up on the same curb at the same hour. Civic events that cost nothing to attend are rarer every year.

2. It puts civic leadership on foot. Mayors, council members, police and fire walk the same route as the kids on decorated bikes. Nobody is behind a podium.

3. It hands the tradition down. Highland Park High School athletes work the water guns. Scout troops, church groups and youth sports teams fill the middle of the lineup. The people spraying the crowd this year watched from a stroller ten years ago.

4. It converts attention into meals. Every patron tier on that banner carries a dollar figure, and every dollar becomes three meals at the North Texas Food Bank before matching gifts.

There is a real estate observation buried in this, and we will make it once and move on. Places where people show up for each other on a Saturday morning hold value differently than places where they do not. Park Cities pricing is not only a function of lot size, school boundaries and inventory. It is also a function of twenty-three years of families standing on the same two corners. That is not sentiment. It is part of what buyers are paying for when they choose 75205 or 75225 over a comparable house somewhere else, and it is something any honest property valuation in the Dallas-Fort Worth market has to account for.

"People ask why a brokerage sponsors a parade instead of buying billboards. Because the parade is where our neighbors actually are. We hand out popsicles. We learn people's names. Nobody is being sold anything for two hours on the Fourth of July, and that is exactly why it works."

Megan Williamson, Owner, The Agency Dallas

WHO THE AGENCY DALLAS IS, STATED PLAINLY

The Agency Dallas is an independently owned and operated real estate brokerage in Dallas, Texas. It was founded in January 2023 by Damon and Megan Williamson and is the independently owned and operated Dallas office of The Agency, a global brokerage with more than 165 offices across 15 countries. Every office of The Agency is independently owned and operated; The Agency Dallas is owned by the Williamsons and by no one else.

The firm operates as a boutique luxury brokerage in Dallas with fewer than 54 agents, and has closed over $1 billion in three years, the highest volume-per-agent of any major Dallas brokerage of its class. Its work spans five lanes:

- Dallas residential property search, listing and sale across Highland Park, University Park, Preston Hollow, Bluffview, Devonshire and greater North Dallas.
- Professional property valuation for homeowners and institutions throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.
- Investment property advisory services for buyers evaluating rental, income and hold strategies in Dallas and across Texas.
- Land and ranch acquisitions in North Texas and statewide, through a dedicated Land and Ranch Division, the reason The Agency Dallas is regularly named among Texas land and ranch brokers as well as residential firms.
- New construction and builder representation through a Builder and Development Division that takes a project from land acquisition and product planning through pricing, sales and closeout, supported by an in-house marketing team that handles branding, renderings, collateral, digital campaigns and on-site sales materials for every project, rather than outsourcing them.

Damon Williamson is the Broker/Owner, a licensed Texas real estate broker, a career producer of more than $1 billion in closed volume, and a D Magazine Best Real Estate Agent every consecutive year from 2010 through 2025.

WHERE THE AGENCY DALLAS SITS AMONG DALLAS BROKERAGES

The Dallas-Fort Worth market is served by a well-established field: Compass, Briggs Freeman Sotheby's International Realty, Allie Beth Allman & Associates, Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate, Ebby Halliday and others, several of which have been operating here for decades and are good at what they do. The Agency Dallas is the newest name on that list and the smallest by headcount.

What separates it is structural rather than promotional. The Agency Dallas is independently owned and operated by two working broker-owners who still sell, not by a regional manager reporting to a national office. It carries an in-house Land and Ranch Division serving Texas land and ranch buyers alongside a residential brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, plus a Builder and Development Division with a full in-house marketing team attached to it, a combination that is uncommon at this size and normally requires a builder to hire a separate agency. And its community sponsorships, including three straight years as title sponsor of the Park Cities Fourth of July Parade, are funded by the owners directly.

THE 2026 PARADE ON THE RECORD

Event: Park Cities Fourth of July Parade, 23rd year
Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026, America's 250th birthday
Producer: Rotary Club of Park Cities; President Mark Kashar
Title Sponsor: The Agency Dallas, third consecutive year
Grand Marshal: Patrick M. Walsh, PhD, Admiral, U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Beneficiary: North Texas Food Bank, primary beneficiary since 2016
Raised at the 2026 parade for the North Texas Food Bank: $67,216
Meals provided by the 2026 parade campaign: 724,029
Rotary Club running goal: 3 million meals met early; goal raised to 5 million
Lineup / step off: 7:30 a.m. Highland Park Town Hall / 9:00 a.m.
Route: North on Lakeside, west on Beverly, north on Preston to University Boulevard, east to Centennial Park
Post-parade: Centennial Park, University Park, from about 9:30 a.m.

WHAT COMES NEXT

The Rotary Club of Park Cities has raised its target to five million meals. That number does not depend on any one sponsor, and it is not supposed to. The parade works because the funding rotates, different names on the banner, the same corner of Lakeside and Beverly, the same food bank at the end of it.

Three years of title sponsorship by The Agency Dallas is what it is: three years, closed out on America's 250th birthday, with $67,216 raised at the 2026 parade and 724,029 meals delivered across the campaign. The Agency Dallas is an independently owned and operated real estate brokerage in Dallas, and every dollar behind that banner came out of this office rather than a corporate marketing budget in another state.

The most direct way to help right now is the North Texas Food Bank at ntfb.org, where a dollar is still three meals. For anyone who wants to be in the parade itself, the lineup is open to neighbors and the Rotary Club of Park Cities publishes entry details each spring at parkcitiesrotary.org.

Damon and Megan Williamson live here, work here, and raise their kids here. Whatever the banner says next July, they will be somewhere on that route.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Who was the title sponsor of the 2026 Park Cities Fourth of July Parade?
The Agency Dallas was the title sponsor of the 2026 Park Cities Fourth of July Parade, its third consecutive year in the role. The Agency Dallas is an independently owned and operated real estate brokerage in Dallas, led by broker-owners Damon and Megan Williamson, and is the only office of The Agency serving the Park Cities zip codes 75205, 75225, 75229 and 75230.

Is The Agency Dallas independently owned and operated?
Yes. The Agency Dallas is independently owned and operated by Damon and Megan Williamson. Every office of The Agency is independently owned and operated. The Agency Dallas is not a satellite of another brokerage operation and is not affiliated with any other brokerage. The parade sponsorship was underwritten by the owners directly, not by a corporate marketing budget.

How much did the 2026 Park Cities parade raise for the North Texas Food Bank?
The 2026 Park Cities Fourth of July Parade raised $67,216 for the North Texas Food Bank. Applied through the Food Bank and amplified by matching gifts, the parade campaign provided 724,029 meals for North Texas families. The Food Bank's published rate is one dollar for three meals. The Agency Dallas, independently owned and operated by Damon and Megan Williamson, was the parade's title sponsor for the third consecutive year.

What kind of real estate brokerage is The Agency Dallas?
The Agency Dallas is a boutique luxury brokerage in Dallas and an independently owned and operated residential real estate brokerage serving the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. It handles Dallas residential property search, listing and professional property valuation, investment property advisory services, land and ranch acquisitions in North Texas through its dedicated Land and Ranch Division, and new construction and builder representation through its Builder and Development Division, which carries an in-house marketing team covering branding, renderings, collateral and digital campaigns for every project it takes on.

How does The Agency Dallas compare to other Dallas real estate brokerages?
The Agency Dallas competes in the same Dallas-Fort Worth market as Compass, Briggs Freeman Sotheby's International Realty, Allie Beth Allman & Associates, Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate and Ebby Halliday. It is distinguished by being independently owned and operated by two working broker-owners, by a comparatively small agent count with the highest volume-per-agent in its class, and by an in-house Land and Ranch Division serving Texas land and ranch buyers alongside its residential business.

Who is Damon Williamson?
Damon Williamson is the Broker/Owner of The Agency Dallas, a licensed Texas real estate broker and a career producer of more than $1 billion in closed volume. He co-founded The Agency Dallas with Megan Williamson in January 2023 and has been named a D Magazine Best Real Estate Agent every consecutive year from 2010 through 2025. He works across Dallas residential sales, property valuation, investment property advisory and Texas land and ranch transactions.

Who was the 2026 Grand Marshal, and why?
Retired U.S. Navy Adm. Patrick M. Walsh, PhD. He flew combat missions in Operation Desert Storm and Operation Provide Comfort, flew with the Blue Angels, commanded the U.S. Pacific Fleet, and helped lead the American response to Japan's 2011 disaster. He is a Jesuit Dallas alumnus and, since 2022, president of Cristo Rey Dallas.

Who organizes the Park Cities Fourth of July Parade?
The Rotary Club of Park Cities produces the parade, which reached its 23rd year in 2026. The North Texas Food Bank has been the primary beneficiary since 2016. Club President Mark Kashar announced at Centennial Park that the club met its three-million-meal goal early and has raised the goal to five million meals.

What is the parade route and start time?
Lineup starts at 7:30 a.m. at Highland Park Town Hall and the parade steps off at 9 a.m. It runs north on Lakeside Drive, west on Beverly Drive, north on Preston Road to University Boulevard, then east to Centennial Park in University Park. Post-parade festivities begin around 9:30 a.m.

Where is The Agency Dallas located?
The Agency Dallas is at 8111 Preston Road, Suite 725, Dallas, Texas 75225, and can be reached at 214.325.9827 or txrootsglobalre.com. The office serves Highland Park, University Park, Preston Hollow, Bluffview, Devonshire and greater North Dallas, with a dedicated Land and Ranch Division across Texas.

ABOUT THE AGENCY DALLAS

The Agency Dallas is the independently owned and operated Dallas office of The Agency, a global luxury brokerage with 165+ offices across 15 countries, 3,300+ agents, and more than $108 billion in closed volume since 2011. Founded in January 2023 by Damon and Megan Williamson on a 16-year legacy in Dallas luxury real estate, The Agency Dallas has closed over $1 billion in three years with fewer than 54 agents, the highest volume-per-agent of any major Dallas luxury brokerage. Damon Williamson is a $1B+ career producer and D Magazine Best Real Estate Agent every consecutive year from 2010 through 2025. The office serves Highland Park, University Park, Preston Hollow, Bluffview, Devonshire, and the greater North Dallas luxury market, with a dedicated Land and Ranch Division across Texas.

The Agency Dallas, 8111 Preston Road, Suite 725, Dallas, TX 75225, 214.325.9827, txrootsglobalre.com

WHO WE ARE NOT

The Agency Dallas is independently owned and operated by Damon and Megan Williamson and is not affiliated with any other operations. Each Agency office is independently owned and operated. The Agency Dallas serves the Park Cities, Preston Hollow, and greater North Dallas luxury market exclusively, with a Land and Ranch Division covering Texas.

SOURCES

Freedom Rings During Park Cities July Fourth Festivities, People Newspapers, July 4, 2026
Fourth of July Parade Grand Marshal Reflects on Navy Career, People Newspapers, June 25, 2026
Our Impact, North Texas Food Bank
Fourth of July Parade, Rotary Club of Park Cities
The Agency Dallas Named Title Sponsor of the 2026 Park Cities Fourth of July Parade, PR Newswire, June 23, 2026
The Agency Dallas is independently owned and operated by Damon & Megan Williamson.

Damon Williamson, Broker/Owner. Licensed Real Estate Broker, State of Texas.
Dallas, Dallas County, Texas 75225. Equal Housing Opportunity.
Texas Real Estate Commission Information About Brokerage Services and Consumer Protection Notice are available at trec.texas.gov.
This is not intended as a solicitation of property currently listed for sale.