Collision repair and auto body teacher perishes in Texas flooding, CIF offering help to flood victims

Among those killed in Central Texas flash flooding from the Guadalupe River over the holiday weekend was at least one person in the collision repair industry, a high school educator.

The New York Times reports that longtime Houston high school teacher Jeff Wilson was camping near the river with his wife, Amber, and their 12-year-old son, Shiloh. Amber and Shiloh were still missing as of Monday morning.

The flooding killed at least 102 people, with the death toll expected to rise. Ten girls and one counselor from Camp Mystic, an all-girls’ Christian summer camp, are still missing. Twenty-seven children and counselors from the camp have been reported dead.

Wilson’s brother-in-law, John Dustin Ledford, posted on social media Saturday that he had found Wilson’s truck in the water, but didn’t find the family or their camper, according to the article.

“In a letter emailed on Sunday to the families of students at Kingwood Park High School, where Mr. Wilson taught collision repair and auto body refinishing, and Creekwood Middle School, where Shiloh was a rising seventh-grader, the principals of the two schools said that the community is continuing ‘to hold onto hope during this incredibly difficult time,'” the article says.

“Mr. Wilson, 55, had worked in the Humble Independent School District for 30 years and was beloved by students and his colleagues, said Missi Taylor, an architecture teacher whose classroom at Kingwood Park High School was next to Mr. Wilson’s. He was the kind of guy who would do anything to help another teacher or student, she said, including even happily fixing the dings on people’s family cars.”

A KWTX News 10 post, which was shared in a Facebook group created after the flood, quotes Wilson’s friend of over 25 years, Johnny Dudley.

“We went to a bunch of the same rodeos back when he was riding. Now his 12-year-old son Shiloh is riding, and Jeff loves nothing more than to haul him to junior rodeos,” Dudley told the news station. “We know that they were in Kerrville for a rodeo, and we know that they haven’t been heard from since the flood. The whole rodeo world is praying for them and all the others affected.”

Wilson would also tell students and teachers about his rodeo past, according to the NYT article. His father, Stanley Wilson, is in the Texas Rodeo Hall of Fame, and Jeff rode steers, bulls, and saddle bronc horses, but was forced to retire in 2004 because of injuries from a motorcycle accident.

“He was just so genuine,” Taylor said in the article, choking up. “He loved his wife so much, and his son was just such a big part of his life. This is just so surreal, like, this just can’t be happening.”

Search efforts continued across Kerr County and Kerrville on Monday. The Kerrville Police Department said Monday morning that rescue teams had worked throughout Sunday night, and ground teams were searching the river corridor.

“We are not slowing down,” the police department said on its Facebook page. “Our first responders were hampered by heavy traffic yesterday, mostly sightseers who are making things worse. If you’re not from here, don’t come here to see flood damage. If you live here, avoid the river corridor so our first responders can do their jobs.”

According to the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office, by Sunday, there were over 400 first responders from more than 20 agencies at work in Kerr County.

State and federal agencies have also been involved in rescue efforts.

The Sheriff’s Office asked those who would like to make cash donations to victims’ families to do so through the Community Foundation Flood Relief Fund.

Those in the collision repair industry affected by the flooding can request help from or make tax-deductible donations to the Collision Industry Foundation (CIF). The nonprofit organization provides emergency relief to collision repair professionals who have ​experienced significant losses​ due to natural disasters or other catastrophic events.

San Angelo, Texas, and surrounding areas also experienced flash flooding from the torrential downpours, as seen below.

CBS News reports the area hit hardest was Kerr County. According to a map created by CBS, other counties that have reported fatalities from the flooding include Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green, Travis, and Williamson counties.

The NYT article also shares some information about several other victims, including:

• • Tanya Burwick, 62, who perished on her drive to work;
  • Chloe Childress, 18, a Camp Mystic counselor;
  • Dick Eastland, longtime Camp Mystic director, who was swept away trying to rescue campers;
  • Julian Ryan, 27, who died trying to save his mother, fiancée, and two young children;
  • Sisters Blair and Brooke Harber, who were 11 and 13, died while staying in a cabin on the river with their grandparents;
  • Katheryn Eads, 52, was swept away out of an RV that stalled in the rising floodwaters;
  • Sarah Marsh, 8, was a camper at Camp Mystic and was described as a “beautiful spunky ray of light” by her grandmother;
  • Janie Hunt, 9, another Camp Mystic camper attended with six of her cousins who were confirmed safe;
  • Camp Mystic campers Hanna and Rebecca Lawrence, 8-year-old twin sisters. Their grandfather said the joy they brought their family “can never be forgotten;”
  • Bobby Martin, 46, and his wife, Amanda Martin, 44, who were swept away while camping in their RV near the river; and
  • Jane Ragsdale, the director and co-owner of the Heart O’ the Hills summer camp in Kerr County. She became director in 1988 after coming there as a camper and becoming  a counselor.

The Associated Press reports Gov. Gov. Greg Abbott said Sunday that 41 people were unaccounted for across the state and more could be missing. Friday’s downpour was the equivalent of a months’ worth of rain for the area, and with more rain on the way Monday, the risk of more flooding was still high in saturated parts of central Texas, according to the article.

According to the AP, local officials are also facing scrutiny for their response, who say no one saw the flood potential coming. Reports have said the National Weather Service sent out flash flood warnings in the early hours of Friday morning before issuing flash flood emergency alerts.

Images

Featured image: Photo of the Guadalupe River several feet above normal near Comfort, Texas, about 25 minutes from Kerrville, in July 2024. File photo by Marcus Wennrich/iStock

Search and rescue personnel photo from Kerr County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page

Swift water rescue and flood damage video/San Angelo Police Department