Positive Camp Mystic Spirit Overcomes Tragedy

As dark, debris-strewn waters of the angry and swollen Guadalupe River continued to rise at Camp Mystic on July 4, frightened girls were kept distracted by their college-aged counselors.

They prayed for protection and safety, and also sang songs from the Camp Mystic songbook.

For two girls—one from Oklahoma City and another from suburban Washington, D.C.—this was supposed to be a fun-filled month of activities like archery, swimming, and horseback riding in the picturesque Texas Hill Country. But what happened in those early morning hours changed all of that in a dramatic fashion no one could imagine.

Julia*, an 11-year-old from Oklahoma, was spending her third year at Camp Mystic, having been dropped off a week earlier, along with her 11-year-old cousin Catherine* from Virginia. Both would be staying in the cabin nicknamed “Hangout,” which was located less than 300 feet from the riverbank in an area called “The Flats.”

The first week had been idyllic. Photos of the campers and their counselors show girls and young women playing games, swimming in the Guadalupe, and simply enjoying their girlhood among the sister-like community that has been host to numerous well-known and well-connected Texas families and their daughters.

Julia and Catherine were unusual in that they were among the few living outside the state of Texas. But they had made plenty of lifelong friends, and the summer—which had already been a little cooler and rainier than usual—was just beginning.

“I had gotten up in the middle of the night to go to the restroom and I noticed water leaking onto the floor of our cabin,” Julia told NTD. “I didn’t know what was going on. Then, my friend yelled out ‘It is flooding!’”

At that point, the whole cabin woke up and, along with their counselors, and they found shelter at Tumble Inn 2, a neighboring cabin, Julia said.

Outside in the darkness, the frightened children and their counselors could hear the rushing waters getting closer. What had been ankle deep was now knee deep.

Meanwhile, the longtime camp director Dick Eastland and his son Edward Eastland were working as quickly as they could to go to each cabin in The Flats area and pick up the girls to take them to higher ground.

While at Tumble Inn 2 cabin, Julia said she saw the Eastlands in their vehicles, driving through the rising waters.

“That was when I saw Mister Dick’s car and Edward’s truck. I got in Dick’s vehicle and he took us to the rec center,” Julia said.

“[Dick Eastland] told us to calm down and everything will be okay,” Julia said.

Catherine, who was also in Dick Eastland’s vehicle, said the camp director was calm and reassuring with the girls.

“Mister Dick said, ‘The water will rise as quickly as it lowers,’” said Catherine. However, Eastland and many others were not fully aware of just how serious a flood this was turning out to be.

After dropping the Hangout campers at the two-story recreation hall, the heroic camp director and his son raced back to The Flats to save more campers from the rising floodwaters. It was reportedly Dick Eastland’s last pickup before the floodwaters overwhelmed him. He would succumb to injuries suffered in the disaster.

Having moved to the second floor, concerns were growing as the swirling, muddy waters continued to encroach on the frightened campers and staff. The Guadalupe reportedly went from 7 feet to approximately 30 feet in less than an hour.

Inside the Camp Mystic rec hall, Julia and Catherine said they kept themselves busy and distracted by singing nearly every uplifting song in the Camp Mystic songbook.

And just as Dick Eastland had told them, the angry river began to recede, but not before the water had nearly reached the second floor.

“It was very scary,” Catherine told NTD. “It was two feet from us. I just thought it was very scary and I just prayed to God and then the water went down.”

Had the water risen two or more feet, the campers would have been trapped, as the Camp Mystic property had essentially been turned into an island.

Hours ticked by and there was no connection with the outside world. But just as the old saying “it is darkest, just before the dawn,” morning light did come and so did their rescue.

“Once it was light outside, we began walking across a low-lying area that was full of water,” Julia said. “We then made our way to another camp called Cypress Lake.”

Interestingly, Julia said men, some of whom were maintenance workers for the camp, lined the water-sodden path to Cypress Lake, which was on higher ground. These angelic men, Julia said, were there to protect them as they made their way to a safe spot at Cypress Lake.

“When we got there, they fed us cereal, fruit, and chips,” the camper said. “They also gave us water and soda.”

Julia and Catherine, along with another cousin who had been in another cabin, reunited at Cypress Lake. In a few hours, the girls were ferried via helicopter to a nearby high school parking lot by the Texas National Guard.

As the day brightened, Julia and Catherine and the other surviving campers were given a check-up at the staging area at the local high school. From there, they were fed lunch and then bussed to an elementary school gym, until they were taken to the nearby city of Kerrville and reunited with their families.

“I felt relief when I saw my parents,” Julia said.

Julia’s mother added, “we are so saddened and heartbroken for Mystic and all the families that lost loved ones. We are continuing to pray for those families. There are so many people we will never be able to thank in person for saving our children. Camp Mystic staff, first responders and community are heroes and there are no words that would suffice in conveying our gratitude. We saw Dick Eastland at drop off and he and Tweety were so excited and welcoming. He gave everything he had to Camp Mystic and the girls. His final act saving them from the flood. I cannot wrap my head around this tragedy.”

Camp Mystic statement from their website says:

“Camp Mystic is grieving the loss of 27 campers and counselors following the catastrophic flooding on the Guadalupe River. Our hearts are broken alongside our families that are enduring this unimaginable tragedy. We are praying for them constantly. We have been in communication with local and state authorities who are tirelessly deploying extensive resources to search for our missing girls. We are deeply grateful for the outpouring of support from community, first responders, and officials at every level.”