Long before a jersey carries a varsity number, before a student-athlete ever hears their name announced from the stands, before they step onto the field representing Carroll, they’re already part of something bigger. They are a Dragon.
In Southlake, that identity doesn’t begin when a child earns a spot on a team. It begins the first day they walk through the doors of kindergarten. And if the Dragon Tradition Club has its way, every one of those children will grow up knowing there’s an entire community invested in who they’re becoming. Founded in 2022, the Dragon Tradition Club was built on a belief that runs deep in Southlake: excellence is never accidental, and tradition doesn’t simply carry itself forward. It takes a community willing to show up, invest in its community and protect what generations of Dragons worked so hard to build.
Former players. Parents. Alumni. Local businesses. Community members. People willing to look at the next generation and say, “What can we do to make their experience better?” “Our mission is pretty simple: support Dragon student-athletes and help provide our athletic programs with the resources they need to be successful,” says Dragon Tradition Club President Shawn Mackey.
But perhaps what makes the organization most special is the word at the heart of its mission: all. Not one team. Not one sport. Not one generation. Every athlete. Every program. Every Dragon. Because while they may wear different jerseys and chase different dreams, they all carry the same legacy. And that investment is something students can see and feel.
The Tradition Club has supported improvements throughout Carroll athletics, including middle school weight room improvements, the Senior High weight room renovation, athletic training room improvements, the creation of a recovery and nutrition room, new indoor fieldhouse lighting, football and baseball locker room renovations, a new volleyball locker room, support for the strength and conditioning program and resources for Dragon Youth Football.
The list is impressive. But, the lives behind the list are what truly matter. It’s the middle schooler walking into a better weight room and beginning to understand what it means to train like a Dragon. It’s the volleyball player opening the door to a locker room created with her team in mind. It’s the injured athlete receiving care in an improved training facility. It’s a young child watching the older kids compete and beginning to imagine the day it might be them. Those moments are the return on the investment. And there are so many more to come.
Looking ahead, the Tradition Club continues to work with coaches and athletic leadership to identify opportunities to improve facilities, training and practice environments, technology, equipment and other resources across Carroll athletics. Potential projects span multiple sports, programs and campuses, with an emphasis on improvements that can have a meaningful and lasting impact on the student-athlete experience.
“Our community invests in these kids today, and years from now, when they’re the alumni, parents and business leaders in Southlake, they’ll turn around and invest in the generation behind them,” Mackey says. “That’s how tradition continues.” That cycle is also why the club is intentionally reaching families earlier.
A parent of a kindergartner may look at Carroll athletics and believe those years are far away. The Tradition Club wants them to know they already have somewhere they belong. Families can become members, attend events and build relationships long before their child ever steps onto a middle school or high school field or court. Alumni can reconnect with programs they once helped build, while local businesses can sponsor projects, support events or contribute directly.
Currently, roughly 100 families participate in the Dragon Tradition Club at some level, with a goal of reaching 250 member families by the end of 2027. But Mackey says growth is about far more than a fundraising number. It’s about connection. Because the greatest traditions aren’t preserved by buildings. They’re preserved by people.
By parents who choose to invest in children other than their own. By businesses that pour back into the community that supports them. By alumni who remember what it felt like to wear Carroll colors and decide the kids coming behind them deserve an experience even better than theirs.
The Dragon Tradition Club is not intended to replace Carroll ISD’s responsibility or funding. Instead, it supplements what the district can provide, helping athletic programs pursue opportunities that otherwise may not be possible. That distinction matters. So does the invitation behind it. The Tradition Club wants coaches and programs to continue bringing legitimate needs forward. It wants families at every stage to know there is a place for them. And it wants a community known for expecting excellence to understand that maintaining excellence requires people willing to participate in it.
Because someday, the kindergartner who is just learning what it means to be a Dragon may become the senior playing their final game in green and white. Someday, that senior may become the alumnus, parent, coach or business owner giving back. And somewhere along the way, they will understand that tradition was never simply something handed to them. It was something generations before them chose to protect. Something they chose to build. And something they cared enough to leave better than they found it.