Jewish camps and camping leaders are joining a chorus of condolences after a flash flood in Kerr County, Texas, killed dozens of children and counselors at a summer camp there.
“In the Jewish community, we know the power of camp. We know it as a sacred space where children find their voice, counselors discover their purpose, and lifelong friendships are formed under starry skies. We know it as a refuge where values are lived, joy is abundant, and community is built in song, sweat, and spirit,” the interim CEO of the Foundation for Jewish Camp, Jamie Simon, said in a statement on Monday.
“That’s why our hearts are broken alongside the camps in Texas who are grieving unimaginable loss after this week’s devastating flood,” Simon continued.
Amid a death toll nearing 100 across Texas, the tragedy at Camp Mystic stands out. The Christian camp, beloved locally, lost 27 children and counselors when the nearby Guadalupe River spilled over its banks early Friday morning. Three days later, 10 girls and a counselor were still missing. A photograph circulating on social media showed a bunk of smiling grade-school girls with their counselors — all of whom had been killed.
Two camp directors, Jane Ragsdale of Heart O’ the Hills and Dick Eastland of Camp Mystic, have also been confirmed to have died while trying to rescue the children in their charge.
The tragedy has resonated across the robust Jewish camping sector. In the United States, over 190,000 Jewish children attend Jewish camps annually. Jewish camps tend to run longer and draw children for more consecutive years than camps in other communities.
“I can’t stop thinking about this tragedy in Texas. I am sitting here desperately missing my girls, feeling the emptiness without them, but I have the gift of knowing that they are safe at camp,” Lizzy Savetsky, an Orthodox Jewish mother and social media influencer, posted on Instagram. “And I’m trying to wrap my head around the fact that not every mom gets that gift this summer.”
Jewish camps were quick to express their solidarity with those in Texas — while also reassuring anxious families that their own children were protected.
“Our hearts are broken for everyone impacted by the devastating floods in the Texas Hill Country. We are, especially, sending out thoughts and prayers to the entire camp community affected by the flooding here in Texas,” Camp Young Judea-Texas wrote on Facebook, in one representative post. “To the brave camp directors and staff who gave their lives protecting children, we honor you. Their heroism reflects the very best of our camp community.”
The Facebook post added, as more rainy weather was predicted, “We are grateful that CYJ remains safe and unaffected by the flooding, and will continue to monitor weather conditions closely as we prepare for the remainder of our summer sessions.”
While the Mystic tragedy affected Christian campers, at least one Jewish family lost everything in the Texas floods. Crissy Eliashar was home in Jonestown, Texas, about 30 minutes from Austin, with her three children and a friend who was sleeping over when the flood waters began surging into their home. They fled after a neighbor alerted them to the danger.
Now, other families at the Eliashars’ Jewish day school, Austin Jewish Academy, have been sharing an online fundraiser meant to help the family rebuild.
“Last night we narrowly escaped the floods with our lives. My brave babies held on to each other and their beloved dogs while we waded out of our sliding house and into a raging river formed under and behind us,” Eliashar wrote on Facebook. “We need everything.”
Shalom Austin Jewish Family Services, a social services agency that like Austin Jewish Academy is housed on the Shalom Austin campus, announced it would offer free support sessions, emergency assistance and community processing spaces with licensed clinicians in the wake of the flooding.
“As Shabbat ends, our hearts are with all those impacted by the devastating floods in Central Texas, including the families of Kerr County and Camp Mystic,” the organization said in a statement on Saturday. “This tragedy has touched so many lives, with members of our own Shalom Austin community among those affected. We offer our deepest thoughts and prayers for healing, comfort and strength to the families and communities facing loss and rebuilding.”
The crisis resonated far beyond Texas, as Jewish camps across the country sent condolences.
“Our hearts break for our extended camp family in Texas and for all those impacted by the floods. May the memories of those lost be for a blessing,” Ramah Day Camp in Nyack, New York, wrote on Facebook.
“As part of the camp community, we understand the profound impact of summer camp, not just as a place of play, but as a nurturing environment that fosters growth, belonging, and joyful memories,” JCamps Baltimore, the Jewish Community Center of Greater Baltimore’s day camp organization, said in a statement. “We offer our deepest prayers for healing.”
Simon said in an interview that the crisis had left her “heartbroken” — and reflecting on the ties that cut across communities when it comes to summer camp.
“While our traditions and affiliations and identities may differ, we’re united by the belief that camp shapes lives in times of joy and in times of sorrow,” she said. “We obviously are heartbroken that the time of sorrow is now, and are sending our prayers and healing thoughts, and we want them to know they’re not alone, that across the country, Jewish camps and Jewish camp leaders are holding them in our thoughts and prayers.”
An Instagram post by a veteran of Jewish summer camp that went viral over the weekend echoed that point.
“When you choose to send your child to sleepaway camp, you join a small, quiet, powerful club. It doesn’t matter the religion of the camp — Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Catholic — or the focus of the camp — sports, theater, nature, health,” wrote Sarah Cytryn, who travels from her home in Israel each year to send her children to Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, where her family has longstanding ties. “What unites us is a shared faith: in the power of camp, in the people who dedicate their summers to shaping young lives, and in our belief that this experience will help our kids grow, thrive, and discover who they are.”
To the families of Camp Mystic, Cytryn wrote, “You are not alone. We are all standing with you.”
