When you engage in conversation with Brandon and Diannah Perry, some of the terms that frequently pop up will be “work ethic” and “passion.”
That is no surprise, given that the Community Foundation for Ocala/Marion County’s 2024 Philanthropists of the Year are ardent about nonprofits that “speak to” them and are dedicated to working hard to ensure that their Newgate Realty LLC remains among the top one percent of real estate agencies in the region.
Brandon, whose family had owned pet food supply stores in Ohio that were eventually bought by PetSmart, and Diannah, who grew up training and showing horses in north Florida, remain noted in equine circles for their ongoing thoroughbred bloodstock activities. Their backgrounds in these arenas make them even more aware of the special qualities that often are sought by buyers and sellers in the Horse Capital of the World.
After Brandon’s parents had fallen in love with the land here and moved to Ocala, he joined them in 1996. In 2000, he met Diannah, who was training horses and commuting from St. Augustine to Ocala every day. The couple owned a 50-acre horse farm here until they married in 2003 and relocated to Lexington, Kentucky, where they had a 250-acre thoroughbred operation. In 2014, they moved back to Ocala.
“The horses keep bringing us back to the Horse Capital of the World,” Brandon offers.
It was in December of 2021 that they opened Newgate Realty. Brandon is a broker and Diannah is an agent. Agent Hanna Pieri, who also has an equestrian background, rounds out the team.
“We complement each other very well because we have different sets of skills. I grew up in a business that was expanding rapidly and one of our main points to all of our employees and store managers was customer service, customer service, customer service,” Brandon shares. “That’s what we did to separate ourselves from our competition. When we started our brokerage that was very important, following up with our customers, treating them respectfully and really being there as their sounding board and listening to them, which I think is very important. It’s about listening and knowledge, determining clients’ needs and preferences and knowing how they vary depending on passion or equine athlete.”
After Brandon’s mother, Cathy Perry, passed away on Feb. 1, 2020, he and Diannah were charged with carrying out her wishes that a portion of her estate be gifted to nonprofits that were dear to her, but she did not specify which ones. They spent nearly two years researching numerous organizations, even making personal visits to learn more about some of them.
In 2023, the couple again made visits, this time to give grant checks that totaled in excess of $5 million. The local and national charities included the Humane Society of Marion County, which received the largest donation, at $740,120. Also receiving generous donations were Kimberly’s Center for Child Protection, Hospice of Marion County and the Royal Dames for Cancer Research, Inc., of which Cathy had been a member for 17 years.
Other local beneficiaries included the Voices for Change Animal League (VOCAL), Marion Therapeutic Riding Association (MTRA), Final Furlong, Horse Farms Forever, Interfaith Emergency Services, Sheltering Hands and the Junior League of Ocala. Donations also went to the Duke University Brain Tumor Cancer Center, Florida Thoroughbred Charities, Thoroughbred Charities of America and the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Foundation, among others.
“There are so many wonderful charities,” Diannah shares. “We put a lot of thought into those we chose for various reasons—they spoke to us. There are so many different needs, from Kimberly’s Center, where they help abused and neglected children, to MTRA, where they use horse therapy to help mentally and physically challenged people, to Hospice of Marion County and the dedication they have to end of life care with dignity.”
Of Final Furlong, Diannah offers, “We are blessed to have Stephanie Brennan and Final Furlong here in Ocala. I’ve known her for about 25 years, from when she helped train a retired racehorse I had. The only thing that could possibly surpass her advocacy for helping retired racehorses is her expertise as a top-notch horsewoman.”
Stephanie and her husband, thoroughbred trainer Niall Brennan, have consistently developed top racehorses, Diannah adds, noting that, “Stephanie founded Final Furlong in 2009 and has placed more than 100 graduates of Niall Brennan Stables into new homes.”
In addition to their philanthropy, the Perrys also are givers of time and talent, along with their daughter Kinley. Among the local nonprofits that have received hands-on help is Sheltering Hands, which is dedicated to improving the lives of cats through humane care, low-cost spay/neuter surgery, comprehensive adoption programs, education and support services, with which both Diannah and Kinley did volunteer work.
“She currently is very involved in Junior League and volunteers at her church helping with the children. She’s very kind and thoughtful,” Diannah says of Kinley. “We call her Mother Teresa; she’s just got such a giving heart. She is my inspiration.”
“I am fortunate that I learned the joy of sharing with those in need and helping others from a young age. True happiness comes from giving back to the community, through service work, collecting nonperishables and necessities, donations and making a better world,” Kinley offers. “The most important life lessons I have learned from my parents would be my work ethic, being a team player, responsibility, and empathy and respect for all people and animals.”
As for why they give, Brandon says, “I think it’s important and, honestly, the older you get, the more wise you get, and the more you see. I think when you’re younger, you have tunnel vision but when you really can take a look back and see that not everyone can be as fortunate as you, you think about doing something to make a difference.”
“I know all of these charities would say we don’t just need money, we need volunteers too, so that is certainly one way to do it without having to give money and I think it’s important to find something you’re passionate about, whether it’s horses or dogs or elderly people or at-risk people or whatever speaks to you,” he adds, “and if you have the time and financial ability, you should try to make a difference in your community.”
The couple shares an anecdote about Cathy Perry that reveals other ways they have helped the community.
“With the Humane Society of Marion County, not only did we give them money, but my mom was a collector of things, very nice things, and they have the HSMC thrift store, which we have been giving to forever,” Brandon notes. “When it came to clearing her home out, which was quite large, we called Eddie Leedy, the executive director, and Monteen Daniel, who runs the thrift store, and they loaded up 17 box trucks. There’s no telling how much that stuff sold for.”
“It feels good to give, no matter how you do it,” Diannah offers.
“I was thrilled to see that Brandon and Diannah Perry received the title of Philanthropists of the Year; it was well deserved,” offers Austin Burnett, shelter operations manager for the HSMC. “In its first year open to the public, the Humane Society of Marion County Animal Clinic has already seen more than 10,000 new clients. Our clinic is now offering full scale veterinary services, including high volume spay and neuter surgeries, vaccines and testing, wellness and sick exams, various long term medical treatments and X-rays. We are proud to be a staple in Marion County and honored to serve our community with our new animal clinic. It is donors like Brandon and Diannah Perry who make this mission a success.”
“We understand that not everyone is able to give a large amount, but the $100 donor is very important too because that helps keep things going,” says Brandon. “We were very fortunate to give big chunks of money to some of these charities to really do something that they hadn’t been able to do.”
He says, for example, that with the Humane Society, his growing up with dogs and cats and the nature of his parents’ business, which included introducing in-store adoption events, it was important to ask about sustainability.
“We asked, ‘What do you need? What would benefit you the most?’ I think Eddie started out with, ‘Well, we need some air conditioners…’ and I said, ‘No, bigger picture. And he said they had been talking to their board about a clinic,” Brandon recalls. “They got a budget proposal together and came back and said this is what we think it’s going to cost, and I said ‘Okay, done.’ I can’t imagine how it felt to them, but it made us feel amazing that we were able to do that for the community and that it is perpetuating.”
When the couple visited the MTRA campus, the needs were visually apparent.
“As realtors, we tour a lot of properties and horse farms. We can quickly see where a place can improve in both safety, function and aesthetics,” Brandon states. “And their heart was in it, and they were doing everything they could. It was so inspiring, but you could tell they were underfunded. So, I asked, how would new fencing, new lights, fans and footing in the arena help you to help others?”
“Our biggest hope is that other people follow suit,” Diannah says warmly, “whatever charity speaks to them, that they consider giving whether it’s in estate planning or some other way. It’s easy to throw things away. It just takes one more step to donate usable items to one of the many nonprofit thrift stores. You can even schedule large items to be picked up. Every little bit helps.”
“Brandon and Diannah Perry have transformed a moment of personal loss into a beacon of hope and positive change for multiple nonprofits across their community,” shares Ashley Gerds, director of strategic engagement for the community foundation. “Their dedication to honoring their mother’s legacy is nothing short of inspiring. The impact of their generosity and hands-on involvement will resonate for generations to come.”
