Written by Amanda Coers – Every year around the Fourth of July in the Brownwood area something special happens. Small American flags seem to pop up all on their own across town. But it’s not magic, it’s the work of a coordinated group of community volunteers and local real estate agency Coldwell Banker.
The tradition of distributing flags for no cost to the community started 18 years ago.
“We started with 250 the first year,” said Mark Campbell with Coldwell Banker in Brownwood. “We started it to market our business and it just became more than that. We have families that have gathered to do this for years and they really enjoy it.”
Mark Campbell leads the volunteers in a short prayer before coordinating the distribution.
Each year the number of flags and the area covered has grown. This year volunteers and Coldwell Banker agents will distribute approximately 6,000 American flags. “We won’t get all of town, but we’re trying to get all the residential properties,” Campbell explained.
There are 107 volunteers distributing flags this year, with different groups including the Early Key Club, Coggin Avenue Baptist – youth group, Brownwood Girls Athletic Department, and Team Fabian. It all starts with a grill out at the Coldwell Banker office on Austin Avenue. With bellies full of burgers and hot dogs, the teams are given their flags and then head to their designated areas. Even with a large coordinated group, it takes several hours to place the flags.
This year volunteers and Coldwell Banker agents will distribute approximately 6,000 American flags.
“We’re hoping to be through before midnight,” said Campbell.
The flags will flutter in the breeze, adorning yards across the Brownwood and Early area for the Fourth of July. And while volunteers are tasked for the distribution, the keep thereafter is up to the community.
“We do ask the residents to dispose of them properly, if they start looking worn or tattered,” Mark Campbell said. “And especially to keep them off the ground. The ground is hard still even though we’ve had some rain, but we need some help from the residents to make sure they stand up.”
This year there is a touch of sadness at the grill out. A longtime volunteer, McKenzie Cox, is dearly missed. The Brownwood High School graduate was just 18 years old, when she died after a rollover accident on Highway 67 nine miles west of Comanche last November. She was on her way home from Tarleton University to visit her family. The community was shaken by her loss.
“We’re honoring McKenzie Cox this year,” Campbell said, wearing a shirt with her name on the sleeve. “Her family have participated in putting out flags for over ten years, and she was here at all the picnics until this year. So we just wanted to do something to recognize her and that we miss her.”
A volunteer wearing this year’s shirt honoring BHS graduate McKenzie Cox.
