On July Fourth, I was at home sipping coffee and checking email near an enormous trunk my daughter had packed for her annual trip to summer camp in the Texas Hill Country. We were planning to drop her off in a couple of days at Vista Camps, an idyllic property nestled along the Guadalupe River.
She was excited about the trip and seeing her old friends. This would be her fourth year learning about horseback riding, archery and what life was like before TikTok. She was already plotting which bunk bed to snag to secure a spot near one of her besties.
Then, at 8:47 a.m., an email from the camp landed in my inbox, addressed to all families.
“We’re heartbroken to share that a devastating flood has caused catastrophic damage to camp,” the message said. No children were on site and no employees were injured. But phone lines were down and it was unclear when the camp would re-open.
The devastation of the Texas flood soon became horribly clear. At nearby Camp Mystic, the raging river swept away 27 children and counselors and the camp’s longtime owner. At last count, 120 people in Central Texas were killed in one of the deadliest floods in state history — and many more are still missing.
In disasters like this, the scale can be overwhelming. So many numbers, so much destruction. But behind each data point is a person. A memory. A future abruptly upended.
That’s why the Houston Chronicle, the San Antonio Express-News and the Austin American-Statesman are doing something different. We’re collecting and sharing the stories of every flood victim. Our goal is to ensure every person is remembered. So far, we’ve published more than 50 beautifully written vignettes.
Everyone deals with grief differently. We’re not here to pressure anyone into talking to the media if they’re not ready. But I’ve learned over the years that many people want to share the memories of their loved ones. If you’re one of them, contact me or senior education reporter Megan Menchaca. Each newsroom has a team of reporters working on this project.
We can’t change what happened. But we can remember the lost by telling their stories.
