The Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country became a central source of housing assistance after the July 4, 2025, flood devastated Kerr County, destroying homes and displacing hundreds of residents.
The Kerrville-based nonprofit opened the Kerr County Flood Relief Fund while floodwaters were still rising. Within a week, it awarded $5 million to organizations providing emergency shelter, food, financial assistance and other immediate services. The foundation later committed $1.6 million to temporary lodging while survivors pursued permanent housing.
Housing became the foundation’s largest recovery investment. As of June 2026, it had granted $82 million for overall recovery, with about 43% directed toward housing. Assistance has included repairs and reconstruction, replacement RVs and mobile homes, rental support and down-payment grants.
The foundation reported that 130 households had returned to permanent housing, while 98 more were on established paths toward permanent homes. About 180 households, representing roughly 400 people, remained in foundation-funded temporary accommodations.
The work has relied on nonprofit partners, case managers, builders and volunteers. Foundation leaders said $15 million of a $50 million housing commitment remained reserved for survivors still awaiting permanent placement, showing that the recovery is substantial but unfinished.
Deluge Before Dawn
When the Guadalupe River rose in the dark hours of July 4, 2025, it did more than wash away cabins and rip apart neighborhoods. It shattered the sense of safety in Kerr County and a sense of loss that no one who lived through it will ever forget.
In “Deluge Before Dawn: Heartbreak, Survival and Resilience After the Guadalupe River Raged,” Kerrville resident Tom Fox tells the story of that night and its aftermath through the voices of those who were there—campers and counselors, first responders and local journalists, families who lost loved ones, and neighbors who refused to leave one another alone in the flood’s wake.
Drawing on dozens of interviews, on-the-ground reporting, and careful reconstruction of the storm and response, Fox traces the catastrophe from the first raindrops to the frantic overnight evacuations at Camp Mystic and along the river, through the searches, vigils, funerals, and long work of rebuilding that followed.
He shows how a community shaped over generations by ranchers, river families, churches, schools, and civic volunteers found within itself the endurance, faith, and mutual help needed to stand up in the face of unthinkable loss.
Flood Remembrance
For Kerrville and the surrounding Hill Country, this Fourth of July will carry both celebration and sorrow.
The community has endured profound loss, and many residents knew someone who died in the catastrophic flood or are still coping with its emotional and psychological effects.
As the nation marks its 250th anniversary, Kerr County will also observe the first anniversary of one of the deadliest disasters in its history. Residents and organizers will have to strike a careful balance between celebrating American independence and remembering the lives lost on July 4, 2025.
The weekend’s events offer an opportunity not only to mourn, but also to support healing and recognize the resilience that has carried the community through a difficult year.
For Kerrville, the commemoration is a chance to honor those who died, acknowledge the trauma that remains and remember the strength, compassion and sense of community that emerged in the aftermath of the disaster.
Guests:
Austin Dixon is the CEO at the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country.
Thomas Fox is the author of “Deluge Before Dawn: Heartbreak, Survival and Resilience After the Guadalupe River Raged.”
Stacie Leporati is the executive director of Arcadia Live.
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This interview will be recorded live on Thursday, July 2, 2026, at 12:00 p.m.
