KERR COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — Nestled in the hills of Kerr County along the banks of the Guadalupe River, Camp Mystic has long been a cherished retreat for generations of young women — a place rooted in Christian faith, tradition and lifelong friendships.
Now, the all-girls summer camp is at the center of a tragedy after deadly floodwaters swept through the area in the early morning hours of July 4.
Amy Hudson, a longtime camper, former counselor and mother of four Mystic campers, says the emotional weight of the loss is difficult to put into words.
“Devastating for the lives lost. Devastating for their families. You just cannot start to imagine the grief of that. I sent all four of our children off every single summer to the happiest place in the world,” Hudson said.
“When you drive into the camp, there is an unmistakable feeling,” she said. “You drive through the gates and all of a sudden the rest of the world goes away. As a camper, I thought I would not feel it again as a counselor. And as a counselor, I did not think I would feel it again as a parent. It doesn’t ever change.”
The loss and destruction at Mystic — where generations have found belonging and purpose — has rippled far beyond the Hill Country.
“It’s a place that embodies happiness, hope, joy, love, faith,” Hudson said. “And to have despair and destruction there is just heartbreaking.”
Still, even in heartbreak, she says the community has responded in a way that reflects the deepest values of Mystic.
“There have been prayer services organized in just about every city in Texas,” Hudson said. “You cannot go anywhere and not find someone who has a Mystic connection.”
From alumni to current campers and counselors, acts of kindness have emerged as the heart of the recovery.
“My own daughter was baking cookies with a group of campers — kids she once counseled — and they were dropping them off at other Mystic campers’ houses,” Hudson said. “None of it was prompted. It’s just what they are called to do: be kind.”
That message — “be kind, one to another” — is one of the core values posted inside the Mystic dining hall, she said, near the bell that calls everyone together.
“Just like home is not a place, camp is not a place. It’s the people that make it,” she said. “You can hope for the future — that whatever it looks like, children and young women still continue to find themselves, find their friends, find the people they will love for the rest of their life, find out who they are, and discover their faith.”
Despite the physical damage, Hudson said the tradition and ideals of Camp Mystic are still standing strong.
“The funny thing is, the stories people are telling in the alumni group from the 1960s and 1970s — they’re the same stories my kids are telling now in their group chats,” she said. “When you’re in the middle of it, you think it changes. But it really doesn’t.”
