Rotarian Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, spoke to the club about the foundation's mission and recent work related to the floods.
The Foundation is a philanthropic organization that works with donors, makes grants to nonprofit organizations, and awards academic scholarships to students in 10 Central Texas counties: Bandera, Blanco, Edwards, Gillespie, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Mason, Real and Uvalde.
They also have been a conduit for funding disaster relief including the Uvalde community, the Crabapple fire outside of Frederickburg, and the recent flood in the Kerrville area. When initial reports of flooding in the Hill Country came in on July 4, 2025, a fund was immediately set up to help with the needs of the community. As the day progressed, the magnitude of the floods and its impact on the residents and visitors became apparent.
On July 4th, 386 donations were made to the Foundation for flood relief. On July 5th, 7,425 donations were made, and by July 7th, due in part to the substantial media coverage, 26,398 donations were made. By July 31, a record 100 million was raised and 11.2 million in relief was granted.
In addition to fulfilling immediate needs, the focus is now on meeting the longer term needs of the area through four strategic funds.
Housing Fund
Mental Health and Well- Being Fund
Economic Recovery and Quality of Life Fund
Future Long Term Needs Fund
If you know of anyone who has been affected by the floods and needs assistance, please direct them to rebuildkerr.org This will start the process through a simple question and answer survey, which will lead to contact by a caseworker.
