[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 118 (Wednesday, July 9, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4272-S4273]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          Central Texas Floods

  Mr. President, one more topic I would like to discuss today. I rise 
with a heavy heart in the aftermath of the flood that occurred in the 
heart of Texas Hill Country. Over 700 girls attended Camp Mystic this 
summer, excited about another year of making new friends and seeing old 
ones.
  They looked forward to long days of swimming in the river, evenings 
laughing with their friends over dinner, and furthering relationships, 
not only with each other but with their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
  As many parents know well, camp is a formative time in our children's 
lives. They learn independence while being away from their families, 
teamwork and sportsmanship as they compete in activities, and 
confidence in leadership as they look up to their counselors who guide 
them emotionally and spiritually. It is a special community to be a 
part of, and it is one that campers never leave.
  These 700 girls had just completed their first week in a month-long 
term before this tragedy. I am devastated for those precious young 
lives that were lost and those that have been changed forever--for the 
parents, the grandparents, brothers, the sisters, the friends who face 
this unimaginable grief.
  One of those girls at Camp Mystic was 8-year-old Sarah Marsh from 
Mountain Brook, AL. Sarah would have been a third grader in the fall at 
Cherokee Bend Elementary School. Her favorite color was blue. As a 
mother myself, reading the Marsh family's statement is heart-
wrenching--losing a child is something no parent should have to endure.
  In that statement, her parents said, in part:

       This [is a] tragedy that no parent can prepare for, and it 
     will never be right this side of Heaven.

  Sarah's grandmother described her as a ``beautiful spunky ray of 
light in our lives.''
  I join my colleagues, I join the people of Alabama, the people across 
this Nation in mourning today for the loss of her precious life and the 
lives of other fellow campers and counselors. I take comfort in the 
fact that I know she is with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
  Scripture tells us: For we know that if the tent that is our Earthly 
home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with 
hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 Corinthians 5:1.
  As we mourn this tragedy, Sarah is in a permanent and perfect home. 
She is there where there is no sorrow, no sickness, and where death 
cannot enter.

[[Page S4273]]

  My heart is also heavy when I consider the more than 100 individuals 
that are still missing, the toll that this has taken on their families.
  The Santana family from Mobile was camping on the river for the 4th 
of July. Eddie and his wife Ileana and their granddaughter Mila Rose 
are still missing. Tragically, Camille, wife to Eddie Junior and mother 
to Mila Rose, was found yesterday and is now at peace with the Lord.
  I continue to pray for this family from Mobile, their loved ones who 
wait and hope, and those who continue to search and rescue in Texas.
  In fact, the devastating flash floods has triggered one of the 
largest search and rescue operations in Texas history. We have seen the 
better part of humanity through the more than 1,700 emergency 
responders and community and family members who are risking their own 
lives to evacuate campers and counselors and search for those who are 
missing.
  To the heroic first responders who continue to conduct search and 
rescue, your country offers you the deepest gratitude for your bravery. 
As a country, we must surround those who are grieving with love and 
support. I continue to pray for the victims' loved ones, the survivors, 
and those who are still missing.
  Mr. President, may their memories live on beyond just Camp Mystic and 
the Kerr County community, but across our Nation and our hearts 
forever.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Illinois.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, let me begin by joining the Senator from 
Alabama expressing my concern with her with what happened in Texas Hill 
Country, the flooding over the weekend. It was a sad chapter in our 
Nation's history and a tragic chapter in the history of these families. 
Our hearts and prayers are with them.