As floodwaters swallowed her home, 21-year-old Joyce Badon sent a final, desperate text: “We’re being washed away.” The message, delivered in the chaos of the Guadalupe River’s sudden surge, was the last her family would ever receive from her.
The July 4th weekend disaster left Central Texas reeling, with over 100 confirmed dead and many still missing. Joyce and her friends—Ella, Reese, and Aiden—were staying at a riverside farmhouse when the waters rose with terrifying speed.
Aiden’s father was on the phone with the group as the flood hit. “The house is no longer there,” he heard before the call cut out. Joyce’s parents, Ty and Kellye, joined volunteers in the search, facing grim discoveries along the way.
Joyce’s body was found on July 7, followed by Reese’s. Ella and Aiden remain missing. Kellye’s Facebook posts—filled with grief and faith—capture a mother’s heartbreak. A rainbow over their home brought a moment of peace, a reminder that Joyce’s spirit lives on.
