Over the past 10 days, I’ve watched, as I’m sure many have, with deep sorrow as Central Texas faced catastrophic flooding. As images surfaced—bridges overwhelmed, buildings overtaken, families displaced—the scale of the disaster was sobering. Yet for me, the most haunting part has not been the flooding itself, but the growing list of names—lives lost, families shattered.
As of this writing, 120 people are confirmed dead. One hundred seventy are still missing. These aren’t just tragic headlines—they’re reminders that behind every system failure, delayed decision, or underestimated threat are real people who bear the cost.
Having recently lived in Georgetown, north of Austin, I found the images from Central Texas especially difficult to watch. We crossed the Austin Avenue bridge over the San Gabriel River multiple times each week. This sam…
