A group of parents arrived at Matt’s El Rancho, an Austin restaurant, on Sept. 4 with mixed feelings of anticipation and grief. They greeted each other with hugs.
They had largely been strangers two months earlier — before they learned that their children at Camp Mystic were missing after a massive flash flood, be fore many waited all night for answers about whether search crews had found any kids alive, before parents had to do the unimaginable and identify their child’s body.
Now, in their immense sadness, they shared a bond. Over the past several weeks, the parents had pushed their ideas for summer camp reforms through the state Legislature with remarkable speed.
They gathered in Austin the day before they expected Gov. Greg Abbott to sign the bills they championed. The changes would require kids’ camps to move overnight cabins out of floodplains, follow weather warnings with radios and install alert systems, and train staff on emergency plans.
The parents believe any one of these steps would have kept their own children alive during the July 4 flood, which claimed 138 lives along the Guadalupe River, including 25 Camp Mystic campers, two counselors and the camp’s director. One camper remains missing. Ultimately, Abbott signed several new camp rules into law. But the pain remains. Keeping so busy had helped the parents avoid the dark places in their minds. Now, they must face the grief head-on.
