‘Our girls are still dead’: Camp Mystic parents pushed for laws to protect kids at camp. But their pain remains

By Emily Foxhall, The Texas Tribune

Matthew Childress arrived at Matt’s El Rancho, an Austin restaurant, on Sept. 4 with mixed feelings of anticipation and grief. He greeted the other parents with hugs.

This group had largely been strangers two months earlier, before they learned that their children at Camp Mystic were missing after a massive flash flood, before many waited all night for answers about whether search crews had found any kids alive, before parents had to do the unimaginable and identify their child’s body.

Now, in their torturous sadness, they shared a bond. Over the past several weeks, these parents had pushed their ideas for summer camp reforms through the state Legislature with remarkable speed.

The moms and dads were gathering in Austin from Beaumont, Dallas, Bellvil