The Diocese of Texas’ Camp Allen in Navasota is cleared to open its summer camp under the state’s new licensing regulations. Photo: Camp Allen, via Facebook
[Episcopal News Service] Episcopal camps in Texas are navigating new state regulations to reopen this summer, a year after one of the state’s camps was the scene of a deadly disaster caused by flash flooding in the Texas Hill Country.
Camp Mystic, a century-old nondenominational camp near the community of Hunt, was hit hardest by the July 4, 2025, flash flooding on the Guadalupe River, which took the lives of 25 campers, two teenage counselors and the camp director. The camp historically has been popular among some Episcopal families, and several Episcopalians were among the dead.
The state of Texas responded by requiring summer camps to implement new precautions before they could renew their licenses, including weather warning systems, emergency action plans and communications upgrades. That reportedly has created uncertainty about how many of the state’s more than 300 licensed camps will be able to open this summer, according to the Texas Tribune.
Several of those camps are run by Episcopal dioceses. Dallas Bishop Robert Price released a statement on May 15 saying the diocesan camp at Texas Elks Camp, near the Oklahoma state line, was among the camps in the state still waiting to receive its license. Episcopal News Service confirmed that as of May 26 the diocese was still waiting for full licensure.
“We cannot operate a diocesan camp on an unlicensed facility,” Price said. He outlined a plan to offer reduced camp programs until the state licenses the camp for full-week stays.
“Our camp staff and clergy are eagerly awaiting the opportunity to offer a wonderful program to the children and youth entrusted to their care,” Price said. “We pray that bureaucratic and legal mountains will move and allow all our Camp All Saints participants to have their full week to enjoy God’s creation and Christian community this summer.”
Camp Allen, operated by the Diocese of Texas near Navasota northwest of Houston, received its license to operate summer programs on May 15, so it did not need to adjust its schedule. It begins welcoming summer campers on May 31.
“This year’s licensing process has been unprecedented for camps across Texas,” Camp Allen President and CEO Allen Kight said in a written response to Episcopal News Service. “I would say the greatest challenge for everyone involved — camps and the state alike — was simply the compressed timeline. Camps were implementing major new requirements while the state was simultaneously building and interpreting a brand-new process.”
One of the most significant upgrades at Camp Allen was a new campus-wide outdoor emergency alert system “to provide immediate communication across our 1,100-acre property.”
“The tragedy along the Guadalupe River last summer affected the entire Texas camp community,” Kight said. “Even camps far removed geographically felt the weight of that loss deeply. At Camp Allen, we welcome every opportunity to strengthen the safety and wellbeing of the children and families entrusted to our care.”
Early July 4, the rain-swollen Guadalupe River rose by up to 26 feet within 45 minutes in some locations, leaving anyone in its path little time to escape to higher ground after receiving scant warning that a severe flash flood was imminent.
More than a dozen camps in Kerr and Kendall counties sustained damage from the flooding, none with as deadly consequences as Camp Mystic. It is located on a low-lying, flood-prone stretch of land near the confluence of the Guadalupe River’s south fork and Cypress Creek.
“In the complete darkness of early morning, the river rapidly rose without enough time to act, tearing through the camp with incredible force,” according to a government account of the disaster at Camp Mystic. “Many survivors recalled a deafening roar before water smashed through doors and windows. Entire cabins were swept off their foundations, and debris was carried hundreds of yards to miles downstream.”
This year, Camp Mystic had worked to reopen for summer, but it faced resistance from state regulators who said it had not fully implemented changes to fulfill safety requirements intended to prevent another disaster. In late April, the camp said it would withdraw its license application for this summer.
Other camps, in facing the more stringent requirements, have had mixed success in their attempts to open for the summer.
Camp Oak Haven in Colorado County, operated by Orr Family Ministries, is among those that won’t reopen because it wasn’t able to meet the new regulations. Instead, the organization chose to sell the camp’s 12 acres, according to the Texas Tribune.
“We are sad. It’s terrible. We had church groups coming, and we had to give back deposits, and I don’t know where those kids will go,” Cynthia Royal, Orr Family Ministries board president, told the Texas Tribune.
Some Episcopal camps have had more success. The Diocese of West Texas operates Camp Capers near the Guadalupe River in the Texas Hill Country community of Waring. It released a statement this spring saying Camp Capers is adhering to the new state regulations and “is in operation with the current state licensure.”
“In designing Camp Capers, cabins and camp facilities were purposely built far above the Guadalupe River to ensure the safety of campers should a flood occur,” the diocese said. “In over 78 years of operation, no water has ever breached the cabins, lodges or dining and activity buildings.”
The diocese acknowledged “the deep hurt” still felt by victims of last year’s flooding in the Hill Country. “Congregations throughout the diocese continue to hold in prayer individuals and communities who have suffered great loss.”
At the same time, the leaders of Episcopal camps have underscored the importance of camp programs for the social, developmental and spiritual growth of their young campers.
“Camp gives children an opportunity to step away from screens, build independence, deepen friendships and faith, and grow in confidence in ways that are increasingly rare today,” Camp Allen’s Kight said. “Our goal is to continue providing those life-changing experiences while continually strengthening the systems that help keep campers safe.”
– David Paulsen is a senior reporter and editor for Episcopal News Service based in Wisconsin. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org.