July 7, 2025 • 32 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
What it's that time, time, Time, Time, Luck and Load.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
The Michael vari Show is on the air.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
Devastating floods in Texas. The depth all continues to rise statewide.
At least seventy eight people have died, sixty eight of
them in Kerr County, including twenty eight children. The county
was hardest hit when the Guadalupe River rose to its
second highest level ever recorded. Rescuers continue to search for
those still unaccounted for.
Speaker 4 (00:42):
Mostacious load a voice like the.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
County.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
It's the food.
Speaker 5 (01:15):
The devastation is unbelievable. How these kids survived in any
of these camps along the river is nothing short of
a miracle.
Speaker 6 (01:26):
We went to bed thinking it's just a normal thunderstorm.
One minute you see lightning strike next to your cabin,
and next to you you hear waters coming up, and
you have kids running just trying to get to other cabins,
trying to get to safety. And the next morning we
(01:47):
had some of the older girls went back to their
cabin seat they could find anything. I remember one girl
walked out with her bible and she was so happy
just to have her bible. Like I put on my
(02:13):
name tag because I didn't. I was scared that if
water's coming out next to our other cabins, that our
cabin might be next, and I would just put it
on just for sake, keeping saying if in my head,
I was saying, if if something does happened and I
do get swept away, at least I'll have my name
on my body.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
My friend Nay name was, that's so funny.
Speaker 7 (02:36):
I've been scrolling.
Speaker 8 (02:38):
I've been scrolling through videos and pictures on my mom's
phone and watching it over and over again for dancing
when she's excited. Yeah she was, she was, so I
just missed her so much time.
Speaker 9 (03:00):
Oh nevery hoy.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Oh blame.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
Me now, ba say.
Speaker 10 (03:22):
I come.
Speaker 11 (03:26):
To the Oh bla me now say.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
To be.
Speaker 7 (03:54):
There's no way, no good way to start a program
like this. My wife said, that's the first time you
have tossed in turn all night in a long time.
Election night. A few things that put me on edge,
but nothing quite like this. Natural disasters and even high
(04:22):
death tolls of natural disasters, we've sort of become numb
to them because there's one happening it seems all the time.
They don't happen more often. They're just worthy of coverage
because they grip your attention. But there's something about children.
(04:48):
As a parent, as a grandparent, as an aunt, as
an uncle, as a teacher, as a coach, as a
human being, there's just something about innocent, precious children. And
in this case, our hearts would go out to Kerrville,
(05:10):
Kerr County, and Travis County, but there is also a
very very strong Houston connection, and as it would happen,
a number of our listeners, not just in the greater
Houston area, but across the state, have connections to many
(05:30):
of the children who were involved. There are still at
last check, let me see the numbers, so I don't
get it wrong. There are still over forty people missing.
But I choose to look at the fact that over
(05:51):
eight hundred fifty people were rescued, and hopefully more over
eight one hundred fifty people rescued, some of those incredibly daring.
There's a story about a young man in the Coastguard
(06:12):
who deserves a parade in his honor, because if you
are fortunate enough to be My understanding is it's camp lahunta.
It's not pronounced in the pure Spanish as lajunta. If
I'm wrong on that, feel free to email me and
tell me this fella saved more lives than anybody on
(06:33):
his first ever run of this sort and boy, did
he ever show out. This guy absolutely showed up to
save lives. And did he ever. I have had communication
through mutual friends with a number of families that were
(06:54):
involved over the weekend. Either their children were rescued, or
their children were missing, or they got the bad news.
I have invited every single one of them to call
the show, but I have not done what I would
normally do, which is push people and try to guilt
people into why they must come on the show too
(07:15):
much respect for what they're going on. But there were
also some very positive stories. Obviously a rescue is of
rescue and recovery and seeming miracles in the midst of
all of this. I would love to have you join
the show, whatever your issue. Connection seven one three nine
(07:38):
nine nine one thousand. This will be a call driven
show from start to finish. Seven one three nine nine
nine one thousand. Let me say this, I'm very well
aware of doctor Christina propsed at Bluefish MD, part of
the Memorial Herman system, and yes, we will expose everything
she said, just not right now. I'm very well aware
of thoughts on cloud seating and how that affects rain,
(08:02):
and we will discuss that, just not right now. I
will comment on the weather advisory because I think it
was more than sufficient and I don't think there's anyone
to blame. But this is not the conspiracy show, This
is not the anger show, this is not the accountability show.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
The Michael Barry Show, Michael Barry.
Speaker 7 (08:23):
Show, seven one thousand. Dell Len, you are first up.
Go ahead, my dear.
Speaker 12 (08:34):
Gosh.
Speaker 13 (08:34):
I feel honored to be the first up. I have
not not a direct connection to Camp. Missed it because
I see it from the outsider.
Speaker 10 (08:43):
I am.
Speaker 13 (08:44):
I will protect my partner. My partner of twenty five
years was a Mystic girl from about nineteen seventy four
through probably the mid eighties. She camped through her whole
young life and then went back into camp for when
she and I got together, I heard about Camp Stick Forever,
the influence on her, the people out there, the Christian influence,
(09:04):
and of the women that come out of Mystic We're
talking about generations, Michael, of strong women that have come
through that camp. I get emotional I think about it
because we're talking about a camp that started in nineteen
twenty six. Next year would have been their one hundredth anniversary.
That she had been receiving emails about going out there
(09:27):
for this big, huge anniversary. But she had described to
me over the years of how much this camp influenced her,
and about I would say about ten to maybe fifteen
years ago, she took me out there and I saw
it for myself, and it was about this coming year.
It was around July fourth weekend, and it was everything
(09:47):
that she had ever described to me. The women that
are out there, and the leader, the man who gave
his life to say that to save the young girls
in the cabin, had a profound, profound influence on her
and all those girls out there. And my my, my
(10:09):
opinion of it, and what I see from her is
that I worry about the campground going forward because this
is a lot to put on these girls on this
camp ground to come through the recovery of this, the
loss of the girls out there, and I just hope
that for the future that this campground can survive because
(10:29):
I don't think we as Texans really know the impact
and the girls that have come through that camp it's
not a program, but have come through this camp. I
mean the person that I'm with was she was out
there with I mean, oh Lbj's grandchildren and all. I
mean there there are some very very uh I don't
(10:51):
I won't say influential, but a lot of girls that
have come through this this camp that are making their
way today, whether it's whether they're in their team, their twenties, thirties, forties, fifties, sixties.
My partner went to camp with the other with the
other camp leader that gave her life at Heart of
the Hills. She was at camp with her, and that
(11:11):
was Rasdale has Janie Ragsdale. She went to camp with her,
and she said just the profile and influence that she
had on all of us out there as campers at
the time. The people that gave their lives, as she says,
she said, they were the nurturers of the flock, and
they protected their flock first, and they gave their lives
(11:31):
to their flock. And she said, and it does not
surprise me at all that the two people that the
worst that were probably the most influential people out there,
Janie and mister and Dick Eastman, gave their lives for
this because she said they they certainly were that for
all of us. She was, like I said, at Camper,
you know, forty years ago.
Speaker 7 (11:50):
So I have heard from people who went there more
years ago than that, and as recently as a few
years ago. And it's one of those things. I didn't
go to camp, and my kids didn't go to camp.
(12:11):
Crockett and Michael both went to the Young Life Bibles
Study camp in Colorado, where you hike all day and
then you study the Bible on the side of the
mountain until you reach the top and you come back
down and repeat the process and you sleep outdoors. And
they loved it. But we were not a camp family.
I did not grow up a camp family. But I
(12:33):
have so many friends and I always make it my
point to interact with the kids when they are around,
and you know, what are you doing this summer? What
are your grades? What do you want to do? And
these camps have such a big influence, such grounding on
these kids, and I think it says a lot about
(12:53):
the camp how many how those kids vie to go
back and be account because they looked up to their
counselor so much and had such respect for their counselors
and the role of their counselor and the role their
counselor had on them that they too. You know, you
(13:16):
think about Chloe Childress. She's just finished high school, she's
got the summer off. She could have done anything. She
could have gone on the senior trip, she could have vacation,
she could have whatevery eighteen year old wants to do.
She could have laid up in bed and played video
(13:36):
games or sent lol text to her friends. But it
was important to her to go spend presumably a month
and be a camp counselor at the camp that she
had attended as a kid. And she's still a kid herself.
In my opinion, I have a number of friends who
were who were friends with that family. Once I posted
(14:03):
that we were going to be talking about this today,
how many people I knew that we're close to those
families and the one degree of separation in some cases
direct contact. Both Michael and Crockett knew Gloated childrens. She's
in between them in their years of high school.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
But it's.
Speaker 7 (14:23):
It's just amazing what a small town Houston becomes when
something like this happens. It's it's amazing how connected people are.
And my wife not having grown up here, said how
does this happen as big as the city is, And
I said, well, every parent grew up somewhere, so they
(14:45):
have their you know, the Vin dram. They have their
circle of people that they knew, and if they grew
up in Houston, especially in West Houston, then they're going
to know a lot of people. Then their wife the same.
Then the father went to played ball, likely went to college,
very likely to A and M or ut or Tech.
(15:08):
And then they got out and they started working and
everyone they interact with that they work with over the years,
and then maybe they're in a men's group, the family's
in a church. They then the kids play ball or
cheer or volleyball or track, and you get to know
those families and over a period of time, before you
(15:31):
know it, you have a very wide circle of friends
that when something like this happens, becomes much more close knit.
Situations like this do not build character, They reveal it.
And it's amazing. I have seen it seven one, three, nine, nine, nine, one.
Speaker 2 (15:50):
Thousand, The Michael Barry Show, Michael Barry.
Speaker 8 (15:54):
Show, Easy truth Ism times.
Speaker 7 (16:07):
She can't tell you how many messages I got like this.
Czar Our friend of mine, Brent Dillon, and his wife Lisa,
lost their daughter Lucy in the flood. I only tell
you this because I know you may know him because
he donated to your causes. He owned text escape services,
which he has since sold. I don't have a child.
(16:29):
I cannot even imagine the pain of losing one someone else.
Seven one, three, nine, nine, one thousand. We'll get to
your calls. Posted say their name for the girls of
Camp Missed It, Kerrville, Texas, July twenty fifth, an editorial
note praying all these girls will return to their families.
(16:49):
I do not have confirmation if these beautiful girls have
been found, return to their families, still missing, or eternally
passed into father's arms. When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you as a forty three two
Jesus wept, John eleven thirty five. I do not know
if these names. I thought when I clipped this that
(17:12):
these were girls who had not made it. It is
my hope that I will read a name and this
girl has made it. That would be good news. I
know that Eloise Peck had passed, but for each one
they posted a little statement about them, and I thought
about how gut wrenching, it would be. These clearly came
(17:35):
from the mothers and fathers, probably mostly the mothers. Just
a little clip about them. Eloise Peck, whose journals held
the makings of memoirs and best sellers. Hadley Hannah, who
loved to sing in the shower, may be destined for
a Broadway debut. Lina Bonner, future florist who knew each
Blooms language by heart. Janie Hunt, a walking giggle headed
(17:58):
for late night comedy or children, or both. Laney Landry,
a little preacher in the making, quoting Psalms by heart
at bedtime. Greta Toronzo who built a lego hospital and
might have built the real thing one day. Virginia Hollis
dreamed in music, composing lullabyes not yet sung. Rene Smastria,
(18:19):
who doodled dresses in the margins, fashioning a life full
of color. Sarah Marsh a prayer warrior already who could
have led generations in worship. Eli Man Sarah, a spark
plug on the soccer field and in every heart she met.
Brenda Joyce, lover of books, already asking grown up questions
about justice and grace. Marie Martha's curious and kind who
(18:43):
might have discovered a cure or at least cure someone's loneliness.
That's where it was said Catherine Feruso, who I have
a number of friends very close to this family, talked
of building treehouses for kids who had none. Caroline Trent
part artist, part dan her full of motion and meaning.
Emma Rose Wilson saved ladybugs, rescued strays and might have
(19:06):
saved the world. A little Charlotte Dade who wore her
heart on her sleeve and her dreams on her walls.
Isabella Isy when future firefighter or astronaut, either way, she
wanted the uniform. That's something a mom would say. Tessa
McCoy practice being a mom with every doll she held.
Natalie Jimen is fluent in two languages and learning a third,
(19:29):
already bridging worlds. That's not all of the girls, that's
just who was posted in that particular lest I heard
a story about Camp Lahunta. I think they say La
Hunt to Lahunta or Niciella Junta. Correct me if I'm wrong.
At Camp La Hunt that Campela Hunter managed. The boys
(19:52):
can't manage not to lose a kid. They were very,
very lucky but I read a story in and then
confirmed with some folks that had firsthand knowledge that some
of the councilors were Eagle Scouts. So these kids are
counselors who were just there themselves the year before. They're
eighteen nineteen years old, and they grabbed their boys and
(20:12):
they put them up on the rafters inside the cabin.
These are pretty rudimentary cabins. It sounds like they grabbed
their boys and put them up on the cabins and
then crawled up there themselves. As the boys were washing by,
they would pull them out of the water and put
them up there. They crawled up on the rafters as
the floodwaters rose. If the waters continue to rise, you
(20:36):
can't get out from inside the roof, right, These are
a frame structures. They're standing on the rafters and holding
probably two by fours for life, and the water managed
to stop mercifully at the bottom of the rafters. So
(20:56):
they're standing in water that has risen that high inside
their cabin and they managed to survive until presumably the
floodwaters receiding. It's an incredible story. There are so many
incredible stories. I wish every single one of them could
be a rescue. That's that's that would be a this
(21:18):
would be a glorious story. US Coastguard rescue swimmer and
petty Officer Scott Ruskin directly saved and astonishing one hundred
and sixty five victims. This was the first rescue mission
of his career and he was the only trioch coordinator
at the scene.
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Wow.
Speaker 7 (21:36):
US Coastguard Swimmer and Petty Officer Scott Ruskin saved one
hundred sixty five people himself. Those helicopter rescues nothing short
of amazing, Nothing short of amazing, Virginia. You're on the
Michael Berry Show. Go ahead, Dear.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
Michael Berry.
Speaker 14 (21:53):
I'm eighty two years old and I went to Camp
Miss Stick right years. My children went for seven years,
and my grandchildren also went. This is just so heartbreaking
to me. Every time I see the pictures, I think about, well,
that's where I stayed, that was my cabin I stayed
(22:13):
in it. It's just a horrible, horrible thing and it
has just affected, like you said, so many people all
over the United States. And there were people that when
I was at camp that came from Mexico. So it's
a sad, sad thing, and I just wanted to share
my story, Virginia.
Speaker 7 (22:32):
How did it come to pass that you started going
to Camp Mystic in the first place?
Speaker 14 (22:37):
Well, in Galveston, and a lot of the kids went.
They all went to Mystic or Waltimore Interesting, and the
guys would go to Stuart Orla Janta. It was just
a thing that everybody in Calveston did, and we loved
it so.
Speaker 7 (22:55):
Much, so so much so, I had not I had
vaguely heard of Heart of the Hills. I don't know
how big it is. It's small, okay, but I have
a number of friends. In fact, I coached baseball against
the guy that owns at X, which is the same
family that does Camp Longhorn. Or is that Camp Ozark?
(23:18):
Maybe it's maybe it's as Ark and at X. But anyway,
I know that that is a big deal. The kids
look forward to that all year long. And it seems
to be the case that once they start at one camp,
they go back to that camp. They look forward to it.
They and they all want to go back and be
a counselor. It's it's a pretty neat deal. It's it's
obviously if you went and then put your own kids
(23:40):
through it, you think it's a great idea.
Speaker 14 (23:42):
And I was a counselor. Also I had met my
husband at Texas Tech and then we came back. He
was from Currville, and so that year I was a counselor.
We got together more and ended up getting married. But
that town is a wonderful town, a beautiful town, hunt was.
(24:07):
You know, everything up there is just just wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.
Speaker 7 (24:13):
It is a wonderful place, prosper comfort. Purrville in the news,
we'll talk to the morning show host of the Purrville
radio station has been through all of this formerly of
Houston in just a few moments.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
But the Michael Berry Show, Michael Berry's.
Speaker 7 (24:27):
Show, Camp Mystic and Camp Lahunta were in session. Thankfully,
part of the hills was not. My understanding is there
are some other camps dotting the landscape or lawn there
that were in between sessions mercifully or it might have
(24:52):
even been worse. It is not only children at camp
who perished. There were folks, as you might imagine July fourth,
who were there on vacation with their families. Who hasn't
gone and floated the Guadalapue Humble isd says beloved high
(25:12):
school teacher Jeff Wilson is one of the victims of
catastrophic flooding in Cerville. He was a teacher in the
district for thirty years. Sadly, his wife and son remain missing.
The story from Khou.
Speaker 2 (25:24):
Well, we know there are many hurting in Currville.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
In the crowd in Kingwood, one man is on many minds.
Speaker 12 (25:30):
It's going to be a very very big boy, a
very big boy.
Speaker 1 (25:34):
Jason Wagner says that Jeff Wilson was his manufacturing teacher
in nineteen ninety six, but over thirty years they became friends,
going on hunting trips. Wagner says Wilson was his best
man at his wedding, busted.
Speaker 7 (25:47):
Up in his class. Hey what are you doing? You
know different?
Speaker 12 (25:49):
Yeah, even after he transferred to Kingwood from Humble, And yeah,
we were just we've been. We've been pretty tight for
about twenty nine, thirty years.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
For them in the crowd.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
For tonight's vigil and God, we lift up the Wilson
family to you. After a moment of prayer, many of
Wilson's former students spoke.
Speaker 7 (26:09):
He meant a lot to me and and yeah he's
gonna be missed.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
That just hurts.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
The impact Jeff had on his family at rodeos and
other family events, Jason saw it firsthand.
Speaker 12 (26:23):
He's got out on probably thousands of students that pay
his mentored over the years. And I'm sure I've spoke
with a young man over there just a few minutes ago.
He's had a heck of an impact on a.
Speaker 7 (26:37):
Lot of people.
Speaker 9 (26:38):
Laughed.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
In wake of the floods, Jason is still trying to
find hope for Jeff's wife, Amber and their son Shiloh.
Speaker 12 (26:45):
I'm still praying to God at the other to her
found safe.
Speaker 1 (26:52):
And Jeff Wilson had just been recently recognized for thirty
years of service to humble ID. Now again, his wife,
Amber and son Shiloh are still missing in Anyone who
has seen them is as to contact authorities in Kerr County.
Speaker 7 (27:09):
Julia, you're on the Michael Berry Show. Julia sent an
email earlier, and I asked her to give us a
call because I thought she had a beautiful story to tell. Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 10 (27:22):
So it's been really tragic in our community. I know
families who have lost daughters, and I know families who
have gotten their daughter's home safe. I'm twenty six and
I went to Mystic for eight wonderful summers, and there
(27:43):
have been some beautiful things that have come out of this.
There have been really heroic counselors. And I saw something
really wonderful about Dicky Flint went to camp, and I
knew him and he was a wonderful person. I saw
(28:06):
an Instagram story and it was a photo of Dick
acting as an umpire during a softball game, and the
photo he has his arms outstretched calling safe as a
girl slides across home plate. And the sentiment of what
the caption was under the photo was that Dick, you know,
(28:30):
he passed and he was calling those girls safe. He
was calling them home and calling them safe. And I
really do believe that that's that that's what he was doing.
That's the person he was. That's the place Mystic was.
It's it's an indescribable place, and it is heaven on earth.
(28:52):
It's so formative to so many girls.
Speaker 14 (28:56):
And.
Speaker 10 (28:58):
It's a good place God is. And I always always
dreamed of sending my girls to Mystic, and I hope
that I still can. I'm praying for the Eastland family.
I'm praying for all the parents who have lost children.
I'm praying for the girls who are still missing. The
(29:22):
Mystic community. It's it's huge, so many girls, the parents
of girls. It's huge, and there's a lot of us
hurting and a lot of us praying, and just just
keep praying. Prayer can lift us, lift us all up.
Speaker 7 (29:43):
Julia, tell me how you first came to go to
Can't Miss It? What was it in? What grade was it?
And then what made you want to go back year
after year?
Speaker 10 (29:56):
So I was not signed up as a baby. Some
people kind of say, oh, yeah, you have to get
on the wait list because it's such a popular camp.
Everyone wants to go. So I spent my first year
at Mystic and I was in jumble house and I
believe I was either going into fourth grade or finishing
(30:18):
fourth grade. I was probably about ten years old.
Speaker 7 (30:23):
And what about the camp. I've seen some videos of
the girls singing songs as they're being evacuated in the bus,
the first bus that went away, and it just struck
me that the spirit of the place, the camaraderie of
the place, and people talk about it. I heard the
lady earlier, she's eighty two years old and going back
(30:44):
to her memories of it. But talk to me about
some of those memories.
Speaker 10 (30:49):
I still think about those songs. I was digging out
some old song sheets and it is so comforting. It's
comforting because those songs have been sung for years, So
not only do I know them, but all the girls
that went there know them. And it's kind of a
way to connect. It's kind of a way to calm yourself.
(31:12):
It's kind of a way to remember the good times.
There are fun and happy and silly songs, and there
are beautiful, meaningful songs something else. Every night they play
taps and at the end of taps they say good night,
can't mistic And that's been particularly emotional.
Speaker 7 (31:38):
It's just beautiful, Julia, thank you for calling it.
Speaker 10 (31:48):
Thank you, pray for can't mistic.
Speaker 7 (31:50):
You've got it. So many of these stories I've heard
I've read over the last couple of days. It's uh yeah,
What it's that time, time, Time, Time, Luck and Load.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
The Michael vari Show is on the air.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
Devastating floods in Texas. The depth all continues to rise statewide.
At least seventy eight people have died, sixty eight of
them in Kerr County, including twenty eight children. The county
was hardest hit when the Guadalupe River rose to its
second highest level ever recorded. Rescuers continue to search for
those still unaccounted for.
Speaker 4 (00:42):
Mostacious load a voice like the.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
County.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
It's the food.
Speaker 5 (01:15):
The devastation is unbelievable. How these kids survived in any
of these camps along the river is nothing short of
a miracle.
Speaker 6 (01:26):
We went to bed thinking it's just a normal thunderstorm.
One minute you see lightning strike next to your cabin,
and next to you you hear waters coming up, and
you have kids running just trying to get to other cabins,
trying to get to safety. And the next morning we
(01:47):
had some of the older girls went back to their
cabin seat they could find anything. I remember one girl
walked out with her bible and she was so happy
just to have her bible. Like I put on my
(02:13):
name tag because I didn't. I was scared that if
water's coming out next to our other cabins, that our
cabin might be next, and I would just put it
on just for sake, keeping saying if in my head,
I was saying, if if something does happened and I
do get swept away, at least I'll have my name
on my body.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
My friend Nay name was, that's so funny.
Speaker 7 (02:36):
I've been scrolling.
Speaker 8 (02:38):
I've been scrolling through videos and pictures on my mom's
phone and watching it over and over again for dancing
when she's excited. Yeah she was, she was, so I
just missed her so much time.
Speaker 9 (03:00):
Oh nevery hoy.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Oh blame.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
Me now, ba say.
Speaker 10 (03:22):
I come.
Speaker 11 (03:26):
To the Oh bla me now say.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
To be.
Speaker 7 (03:54):
There's no way, no good way to start a program
like this. My wife said, that's the first time you
have tossed in turn all night in a long time.
Election night. A few things that put me on edge,
but nothing quite like this. Natural disasters and even high
(04:22):
death tolls of natural disasters, we've sort of become numb
to them because there's one happening it seems all the time.
They don't happen more often. They're just worthy of coverage
because they grip your attention. But there's something about children.
(04:48):
As a parent, as a grandparent, as an aunt, as
an uncle, as a teacher, as a coach, as a
human being, there's just something about innocent, precious children. And
in this case, our hearts would go out to Kerrville,
(05:10):
Kerr County, and Travis County, but there is also a
very very strong Houston connection, and as it would happen,
a number of our listeners, not just in the greater
Houston area, but across the state, have connections to many
(05:30):
of the children who were involved. There are still at
last check, let me see the numbers, so I don't
get it wrong. There are still over forty people missing.
But I choose to look at the fact that over
(05:51):
eight hundred fifty people were rescued, and hopefully more over
eight one hundred fifty people rescued, some of those incredibly daring.
There's a story about a young man in the Coastguard
(06:12):
who deserves a parade in his honor, because if you
are fortunate enough to be My understanding is it's camp lahunta.
It's not pronounced in the pure Spanish as lajunta. If
I'm wrong on that, feel free to email me and
tell me this fella saved more lives than anybody on
(06:33):
his first ever run of this sort and boy, did
he ever show out. This guy absolutely showed up to
save lives. And did he ever. I have had communication
through mutual friends with a number of families that were
(06:54):
involved over the weekend. Either their children were rescued, or
their children were missing, or they got the bad news.
I have invited every single one of them to call
the show, but I have not done what I would
normally do, which is push people and try to guilt
people into why they must come on the show too
(07:15):
much respect for what they're going on. But there were
also some very positive stories. Obviously a rescue is of
rescue and recovery and seeming miracles in the midst of
all of this. I would love to have you join
the show, whatever your issue. Connection seven one three nine
(07:38):
nine nine one thousand. This will be a call driven
show from start to finish. Seven one three nine nine
nine one thousand. Let me say this, I'm very well
aware of doctor Christina propsed at Bluefish MD, part of
the Memorial Herman system, and yes, we will expose everything
she said, just not right now. I'm very well aware
of thoughts on cloud seating and how that affects rain,
(08:02):
and we will discuss that, just not right now. I
will comment on the weather advisory because I think it
was more than sufficient and I don't think there's anyone
to blame. But this is not the conspiracy show, This
is not the anger show, this is not the accountability show.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
The Michael Barry Show, Michael Barry.
Speaker 7 (08:23):
Show, seven one thousand. Dell Len, you are first up.
Go ahead, my dear.
Speaker 12 (08:34):
Gosh.
Speaker 13 (08:34):
I feel honored to be the first up. I have
not not a direct connection to Camp. Missed it because
I see it from the outsider.
Speaker 10 (08:43):
I am.
Speaker 13 (08:44):
I will protect my partner. My partner of twenty five
years was a Mystic girl from about nineteen seventy four
through probably the mid eighties. She camped through her whole
young life and then went back into camp for when
she and I got together, I heard about Camp Stick Forever,
the influence on her, the people out there, the Christian influence,
(09:04):
and of the women that come out of Mystic We're
talking about generations, Michael, of strong women that have come
through that camp. I get emotional I think about it
because we're talking about a camp that started in nineteen
twenty six. Next year would have been their one hundredth anniversary.
That she had been receiving emails about going out there
(09:27):
for this big, huge anniversary. But she had described to
me over the years of how much this camp influenced her,
and about I would say about ten to maybe fifteen
years ago, she took me out there and I saw
it for myself, and it was about this coming year.
It was around July fourth weekend, and it was everything
(09:47):
that she had ever described to me. The women that
are out there, and the leader, the man who gave
his life to say that to save the young girls
in the cabin, had a profound, profound influence on her
and all those girls out there. And my my, my
(10:09):
opinion of it, and what I see from her is
that I worry about the campground going forward because this
is a lot to put on these girls on this
camp ground to come through the recovery of this, the
loss of the girls out there, and I just hope
that for the future that this campground can survive because
(10:29):
I don't think we as Texans really know the impact
and the girls that have come through that camp it's
not a program, but have come through this camp. I
mean the person that I'm with was she was out
there with I mean, oh Lbj's grandchildren and all. I
mean there there are some very very uh I don't
(10:51):
I won't say influential, but a lot of girls that
have come through this this camp that are making their
way today, whether it's whether they're in their team, their twenties, thirties, forties, fifties, sixties.
My partner went to camp with the other with the
other camp leader that gave her life at Heart of
the Hills. She was at camp with her, and that
(11:11):
was Rasdale has Janie Ragsdale. She went to camp with her,
and she said just the profile and influence that she
had on all of us out there as campers at
the time. The people that gave their lives, as she says,
she said, they were the nurturers of the flock, and
they protected their flock first, and they gave their lives
(11:31):
to their flock. And she said, and it does not
surprise me at all that the two people that the
worst that were probably the most influential people out there,
Janie and mister and Dick Eastman, gave their lives for
this because she said they they certainly were that for
all of us. She was, like I said, at Camper,
you know, forty years ago.
Speaker 7 (11:50):
So I have heard from people who went there more
years ago than that, and as recently as a few
years ago. And it's one of those things. I didn't
go to camp, and my kids didn't go to camp.
(12:11):
Crockett and Michael both went to the Young Life Bibles
Study camp in Colorado, where you hike all day and
then you study the Bible on the side of the
mountain until you reach the top and you come back
down and repeat the process and you sleep outdoors. And
they loved it. But we were not a camp family.
I did not grow up a camp family. But I
(12:33):
have so many friends and I always make it my
point to interact with the kids when they are around,
and you know, what are you doing this summer? What
are your grades? What do you want to do? And
these camps have such a big influence, such grounding on
these kids, and I think it says a lot about
(12:53):
the camp how many how those kids vie to go
back and be account because they looked up to their
counselor so much and had such respect for their counselors
and the role of their counselor and the role their
counselor had on them that they too. You know, you
(13:16):
think about Chloe Childress. She's just finished high school, she's
got the summer off. She could have done anything. She
could have gone on the senior trip, she could have vacation,
she could have whatevery eighteen year old wants to do.
She could have laid up in bed and played video
(13:36):
games or sent lol text to her friends. But it
was important to her to go spend presumably a month
and be a camp counselor at the camp that she
had attended as a kid. And she's still a kid herself.
In my opinion, I have a number of friends who
were who were friends with that family. Once I posted
(14:03):
that we were going to be talking about this today,
how many people I knew that we're close to those
families and the one degree of separation in some cases
direct contact. Both Michael and Crockett knew Gloated childrens. She's
in between them in their years of high school.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
But it's.
Speaker 7 (14:23):
It's just amazing what a small town Houston becomes when
something like this happens. It's it's amazing how connected people are.
And my wife not having grown up here, said how
does this happen as big as the city is, And
I said, well, every parent grew up somewhere, so they
(14:45):
have their you know, the Vin dram. They have their
circle of people that they knew, and if they grew
up in Houston, especially in West Houston, then they're going
to know a lot of people. Then their wife the same.
Then the father went to played ball, likely went to college,
very likely to A and M or ut or Tech.
(15:08):
And then they got out and they started working and
everyone they interact with that they work with over the years,
and then maybe they're in a men's group, the family's
in a church. They then the kids play ball or
cheer or volleyball or track, and you get to know
those families and over a period of time, before you
(15:31):
know it, you have a very wide circle of friends
that when something like this happens, becomes much more close knit.
Situations like this do not build character, They reveal it.
And it's amazing. I have seen it seven one, three, nine, nine, nine, one.
Speaker 2 (15:50):
Thousand, The Michael Barry Show, Michael Barry.
Speaker 8 (15:54):
Show, Easy truth Ism times.
Speaker 7 (16:07):
She can't tell you how many messages I got like this.
Czar Our friend of mine, Brent Dillon, and his wife Lisa,
lost their daughter Lucy in the flood. I only tell
you this because I know you may know him because
he donated to your causes. He owned text escape services,
which he has since sold. I don't have a child.
(16:29):
I cannot even imagine the pain of losing one someone else.
Seven one, three, nine, nine, one thousand. We'll get to
your calls. Posted say their name for the girls of
Camp Missed It, Kerrville, Texas, July twenty fifth, an editorial
note praying all these girls will return to their families.
(16:49):
I do not have confirmation if these beautiful girls have
been found, return to their families, still missing, or eternally
passed into father's arms. When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you as a forty three two
Jesus wept, John eleven thirty five. I do not know
if these names. I thought when I clipped this that
(17:12):
these were girls who had not made it. It is
my hope that I will read a name and this
girl has made it. That would be good news. I
know that Eloise Peck had passed, but for each one
they posted a little statement about them, and I thought
about how gut wrenching, it would be. These clearly came
(17:35):
from the mothers and fathers, probably mostly the mothers. Just
a little clip about them. Eloise Peck, whose journals held
the makings of memoirs and best sellers. Hadley Hannah, who
loved to sing in the shower, may be destined for
a Broadway debut. Lina Bonner, future florist who knew each
Blooms language by heart. Janie Hunt, a walking giggle headed
(17:58):
for late night comedy or children, or both. Laney Landry,
a little preacher in the making, quoting Psalms by heart
at bedtime. Greta Toronzo who built a lego hospital and
might have built the real thing one day. Virginia Hollis
dreamed in music, composing lullabyes not yet sung. Rene Smastria,
(18:19):
who doodled dresses in the margins, fashioning a life full
of color. Sarah Marsh a prayer warrior already who could
have led generations in worship. Eli Man Sarah, a spark
plug on the soccer field and in every heart she met.
Brenda Joyce, lover of books, already asking grown up questions
about justice and grace. Marie Martha's curious and kind who
(18:43):
might have discovered a cure or at least cure someone's loneliness.
That's where it was said Catherine Feruso, who I have
a number of friends very close to this family, talked
of building treehouses for kids who had none. Caroline Trent
part artist, part dan her full of motion and meaning.
Emma Rose Wilson saved ladybugs, rescued strays and might have
(19:06):
saved the world. A little Charlotte Dade who wore her
heart on her sleeve and her dreams on her walls.
Isabella Isy when future firefighter or astronaut, either way, she
wanted the uniform. That's something a mom would say. Tessa
McCoy practice being a mom with every doll she held.
Natalie Jimen is fluent in two languages and learning a third,
(19:29):
already bridging worlds. That's not all of the girls, that's
just who was posted in that particular lest I heard
a story about Camp Lahunta. I think they say La
Hunt to Lahunta or Niciella Junta. Correct me if I'm wrong.
At Camp La Hunt that Campela Hunter managed. The boys
(19:52):
can't manage not to lose a kid. They were very,
very lucky but I read a story in and then
confirmed with some folks that had firsthand knowledge that some
of the councilors were Eagle Scouts. So these kids are
counselors who were just there themselves the year before. They're
eighteen nineteen years old, and they grabbed their boys and
(20:12):
they put them up on the rafters inside the cabin.
These are pretty rudimentary cabins. It sounds like they grabbed
their boys and put them up on the cabins and
then crawled up there themselves. As the boys were washing by,
they would pull them out of the water and put
them up there. They crawled up on the rafters as
the floodwaters rose. If the waters continue to rise, you
(20:36):
can't get out from inside the roof, right, These are
a frame structures. They're standing on the rafters and holding
probably two by fours for life, and the water managed
to stop mercifully at the bottom of the rafters. So
(20:56):
they're standing in water that has risen that high inside
their cabin and they managed to survive until presumably the
floodwaters receiding. It's an incredible story. There are so many
incredible stories. I wish every single one of them could
be a rescue. That's that's that would be a this
(21:18):
would be a glorious story. US Coastguard rescue swimmer and
petty Officer Scott Ruskin directly saved and astonishing one hundred
and sixty five victims. This was the first rescue mission
of his career and he was the only trioch coordinator
at the scene.
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Wow.
Speaker 7 (21:36):
US Coastguard Swimmer and Petty Officer Scott Ruskin saved one
hundred sixty five people himself. Those helicopter rescues nothing short
of amazing, Nothing short of amazing, Virginia. You're on the
Michael Berry Show. Go ahead, Dear.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
Michael Berry.
Speaker 14 (21:53):
I'm eighty two years old and I went to Camp
Miss Stick right years. My children went for seven years,
and my grandchildren also went. This is just so heartbreaking
to me. Every time I see the pictures, I think about, well,
that's where I stayed, that was my cabin I stayed
(22:13):
in it. It's just a horrible, horrible thing and it
has just affected, like you said, so many people all
over the United States. And there were people that when
I was at camp that came from Mexico. So it's
a sad, sad thing, and I just wanted to share
my story, Virginia.
Speaker 7 (22:32):
How did it come to pass that you started going
to Camp Mystic in the first place?
Speaker 14 (22:37):
Well, in Galveston, and a lot of the kids went.
They all went to Mystic or Waltimore Interesting, and the
guys would go to Stuart Orla Janta. It was just
a thing that everybody in Calveston did, and we loved
it so.
Speaker 7 (22:55):
Much, so so much so, I had not I had
vaguely heard of Heart of the Hills. I don't know
how big it is. It's small, okay, but I have
a number of friends. In fact, I coached baseball against
the guy that owns at X, which is the same
family that does Camp Longhorn. Or is that Camp Ozark?
(23:18):
Maybe it's maybe it's as Ark and at X. But anyway,
I know that that is a big deal. The kids
look forward to that all year long. And it seems
to be the case that once they start at one camp,
they go back to that camp. They look forward to it.
They and they all want to go back and be
a counselor. It's it's a pretty neat deal. It's it's
obviously if you went and then put your own kids
(23:40):
through it, you think it's a great idea.
Speaker 14 (23:42):
And I was a counselor. Also I had met my
husband at Texas Tech and then we came back. He
was from Currville, and so that year I was a counselor.
We got together more and ended up getting married. But
that town is a wonderful town, a beautiful town, hunt was.
(24:07):
You know, everything up there is just just wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.
Speaker 7 (24:13):
It is a wonderful place, prosper comfort. Purrville in the news,
we'll talk to the morning show host of the Purrville
radio station has been through all of this formerly of
Houston in just a few moments.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
But the Michael Berry Show, Michael Berry's.
Speaker 7 (24:27):
Show, Camp Mystic and Camp Lahunta were in session. Thankfully,
part of the hills was not. My understanding is there
are some other camps dotting the landscape or lawn there
that were in between sessions mercifully or it might have
(24:52):
even been worse. It is not only children at camp
who perished. There were folks, as you might imagine July fourth,
who were there on vacation with their families. Who hasn't
gone and floated the Guadalapue Humble isd says beloved high
(25:12):
school teacher Jeff Wilson is one of the victims of
catastrophic flooding in Cerville. He was a teacher in the
district for thirty years. Sadly, his wife and son remain missing.
The story from Khou.
Speaker 2 (25:24):
Well, we know there are many hurting in Currville.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
In the crowd in Kingwood, one man is on many minds.
Speaker 12 (25:30):
It's going to be a very very big boy, a
very big boy.
Speaker 1 (25:34):
Jason Wagner says that Jeff Wilson was his manufacturing teacher
in nineteen ninety six, but over thirty years they became friends,
going on hunting trips. Wagner says Wilson was his best
man at his wedding, busted.
Speaker 7 (25:47):
Up in his class. Hey what are you doing? You
know different?
Speaker 12 (25:49):
Yeah, even after he transferred to Kingwood from Humble, And yeah,
we were just we've been. We've been pretty tight for
about twenty nine, thirty years.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
For them in the crowd.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
For tonight's vigil and God, we lift up the Wilson
family to you. After a moment of prayer, many of
Wilson's former students spoke.
Speaker 7 (26:09):
He meant a lot to me and and yeah he's
gonna be missed.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
That just hurts.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
The impact Jeff had on his family at rodeos and
other family events, Jason saw it firsthand.
Speaker 12 (26:23):
He's got out on probably thousands of students that pay
his mentored over the years. And I'm sure I've spoke
with a young man over there just a few minutes ago.
He's had a heck of an impact on a.
Speaker 7 (26:37):
Lot of people.
Speaker 9 (26:38):
Laughed.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
In wake of the floods, Jason is still trying to
find hope for Jeff's wife, Amber and their son Shiloh.
Speaker 12 (26:45):
I'm still praying to God at the other to her
found safe.
Speaker 1 (26:52):
And Jeff Wilson had just been recently recognized for thirty
years of service to humble ID. Now again, his wife,
Amber and son Shiloh are still missing in Anyone who
has seen them is as to contact authorities in Kerr County.
Speaker 7 (27:09):
Julia, you're on the Michael Berry Show. Julia sent an
email earlier, and I asked her to give us a
call because I thought she had a beautiful story to tell. Yes, ma'am.
Speaker 10 (27:22):
So it's been really tragic in our community. I know
families who have lost daughters, and I know families who
have gotten their daughter's home safe. I'm twenty six and
I went to Mystic for eight wonderful summers, and there
(27:43):
have been some beautiful things that have come out of this.
There have been really heroic counselors. And I saw something
really wonderful about Dicky Flint went to camp, and I
knew him and he was a wonderful person. I saw
(28:06):
an Instagram story and it was a photo of Dick
acting as an umpire during a softball game, and the
photo he has his arms outstretched calling safe as a
girl slides across home plate. And the sentiment of what
the caption was under the photo was that Dick, you know,
(28:30):
he passed and he was calling those girls safe. He
was calling them home and calling them safe. And I
really do believe that that's that that's what he was doing.
That's the person he was. That's the place Mystic was.
It's it's an indescribable place, and it is heaven on earth.
(28:52):
It's so formative to so many girls.
Speaker 14 (28:56):
And.
Speaker 10 (28:58):
It's a good place God is. And I always always
dreamed of sending my girls to Mystic, and I hope
that I still can. I'm praying for the Eastland family.
I'm praying for all the parents who have lost children.
I'm praying for the girls who are still missing. The
(29:22):
Mystic community. It's it's huge, so many girls, the parents
of girls. It's huge, and there's a lot of us
hurting and a lot of us praying, and just just
keep praying. Prayer can lift us, lift us all up.
Speaker 7 (29:43):
Julia, tell me how you first came to go to
Can't Miss It? What was it in? What grade was it?
And then what made you want to go back year
after year?
Speaker 10 (29:56):
So I was not signed up as a baby. Some
people kind of say, oh, yeah, you have to get
on the wait list because it's such a popular camp.
Everyone wants to go. So I spent my first year
at Mystic and I was in jumble house and I
believe I was either going into fourth grade or finishing
(30:18):
fourth grade. I was probably about ten years old.
Speaker 7 (30:23):
And what about the camp. I've seen some videos of
the girls singing songs as they're being evacuated in the bus,
the first bus that went away, and it just struck
me that the spirit of the place, the camaraderie of
the place, and people talk about it. I heard the
lady earlier, she's eighty two years old and going back
(30:44):
to her memories of it. But talk to me about
some of those memories.
Speaker 10 (30:49):
I still think about those songs. I was digging out
some old song sheets and it is so comforting. It's
comforting because those songs have been sung for years, So
not only do I know them, but all the girls
that went there know them. And it's kind of a
way to connect. It's kind of a way to calm yourself.
(31:12):
It's kind of a way to remember the good times.
There are fun and happy and silly songs, and there
are beautiful, meaningful songs something else. Every night they play
taps and at the end of taps they say good night,
can't mistic And that's been particularly emotional.
Speaker 7 (31:38):
It's just beautiful, Julia, thank you for calling it.
Speaker 10 (31:48):
Thank you, pray for can't mistic.
Speaker 7 (31:50):
You've got it. So many of these stories I've heard
I've read over the last couple of days. It's uh yeah,
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