Preservation Park Cities (PPC) 2023 Distinguished Speaker Luncheon presented by Highland Park Village featured a delightful conversation between Cathy Kincaid, award-winning interior designer and principal of Cathy Kincaid Interiors, Ltd., who also donated personalized signed copies of her book The Well Adorned Home: Making Luxury Livable and Wilson Fuqua, visionary architect and owner and principal architect, Fuqua and Associates. Chaired by Cory Lukens Bowen and Krista Porteous, Honorary Chair was Allie Beth Allman, who was joined by her dear friend former First Lady Laura Bush. Greeting guests as they arrived was a lovely tablescape especially curated by Christina Dandar of The Potted Boxwood for the raffle prize. She also served as moderator for the luncheon presentation and is PPC’s social media chair. The morning’s VIP Meet and Greet Reception sponsored by ROSE GOLD Rosé featured passed wine and sumptuous hors d’oeuvres.
Amy Beale, president, PPC, welcomed the crowd and introduced Audrey Schmit, a deacon at Highland Park Presbyterian Church, who gave the invocation. Amy went on to describe PPC’s mission, which is to preserve and promote the history, architecture, aesthetics, and cultural traditions of the Park Cities. Proceeds of the Distinguished Speaker Luncheon, Historic Home Tour and the Classic and Antique Car Show are used to fund:
• Property Landmarking
• Stewardship of the PPC archives at the UP Library
• HPISD Architecture/History Student Scholarship Award
• The Park Cities House at Dallas Heritage Village
• The Distinguished Chair for History at HPHS
• The “Save the Top 100” campaign and publication of a new book
Beginning the presentation, Christina introduced the speakers revealing that Cathy and Wilson have worked on 10 historic homes together. They said each home presented its own challenges, such as the architectural and design aspects of opening up rooms while maintaining a small room comfortable feeling, uncovering previously hidden windows behind walls and raised ceilings and how to make those architectural features work in a current design while maintaining the integrity of the home.
They discussed topics ranging from home decor trends to art selection, sharing their experiences working in architecturally significant homes and illustrating how they have been remodeled and updated to serve the lifestyle needs of families today. It was very interesting to hear their insightful expert opinions as they talked about many topics, including reinventing a familiar classic home setting, how a fondness for opulence and tradition can be easily mixed in modern accents, incorporating worldly treasures, fresh interpretations of traditional themes and more.
In conclusion, the chairs thanked everyone for their support and drew for the raffle winner. The Distinguished Speaker Luncheon celebrates historic preservation and is designed to generate awareness of the role history and preservation play in enhancing the quality of life for everyone who lives and works in the Park Cities communities.
Additional sponsors include D Home, magazine sponsor; Fuqua Architects, Three Branches Weddings and Events, Cathy Kincaid Interiors, Susan Baldwin, Allie Beth Allman & Associates, Marla and Mike Boone, The Rhodes Group.
For more information about membership in PPC, its benefits and more, visit the website at www.preservationparkcities.org
