Hill Country families rebuild after devastating floods with major community support

In addition to the more than 130 lives lost, thousands of people lost their homes during the historic Hill Country flooding; even more had to deal with flood damage. Many were left wondering whether they would need to pick up and leave Hill Country for good.

But the Community Foundation of Texas, Hill Country Chapter, has raised more than $150 million to help provide relief to the people who live here.

"I just felt like God saved this house for me when I found it. You just walk out on the back patio, and you can hear the rushing waters, and it just brings a lot of peace to me," said Mary Lambert.

On the banks of the Guadalupe River, Lambert thought she was finally home.

But on the morning of the Fourth of July, the river shattered that peace.

"I could hear the roar of the river, and I walked back out, and the river was up, probably 10-12 feet just in a matter of a few minutes," said Lambert.

Just after dawn in Centre Point, the first floor of Lambert's home began to fill with water. 

Upriver, Valerie Mares and her husband were already on the run from rising water.

"It was raining so hard we couldn't really see outside, even with the lights on," said Mares. "The owner's son came and banged on the door, woke us up to it flooding, everywhere. We put our shoes on, grabbed the dog, the keys, got in the car, and drove up a hill."

When the sun rose over the house she rented, Mares was in disbelief.

"It took the Cyprus trees, unimaginable, right? It was unreal. I'd never seen anything like it. It was like a bomb went off," said Mares.

She and her husband were left with just the clothes on their backs, but they had each other.

Downriver, Lambert had left her flooded home and was caring for her 92‑year‑old father. She hadn't even seen the damage.

"It wasn't til Monday morning, a guy that I went to school with called me and said, 'Have you been downstairs?' I said, no. He said we've got to start, Mary," she said.

So many of her possessions were destroyed, soaked in water, and caked in mud.

Both women, like hundreds of others in the Hill Country, were looking for a way to move forward.

"We have a one billion dollar problem, and we have $150 million to solve it," said Jayne Zirkel with the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country.

They want to be the ones to help people like Lambert and Mares.

"We're doing everything we can to leverage those dollars and partner with other organizations to stretch those dollars as far as they will go," said Zirkel.

Sometimes it's paying the property tax for thousands of people like Lambert.

"I got something in the mail from the tax assessor, and my first thought was ughhhh, I don't want anything from the tax assessor, and then I opened it up, and it was a refund check! I could not believe it," said Lambert.

Sometimes, it's life‑changing. The foundation gave Mares and her husband $110,000 for a down payment on a new home.

"We closed March 6th, and we moved in that day," said Mares.

"Daily, my husband and I are just like, can you believe this? It's still so hard to believe... I can't believe this is happening," she said.

These acts of incredible kindness are helping families move forward.

"It feels so light now, like we don't feel heavy and burdened and worried," said Mares.

"More than anything, just that people care this much is really amazing," said Lambert.

To date, Communities Foundation of Texas Hill Country has helped 19 people purchase homes with the down‑payment assistance program, and 108 have received property tax relief.