AUSTIN (KXAN) — The mother of the only camper still missing from Camp Mystic shared a heartfelt tribute to her daughter and called for legislative action while speaking at the Texas Capitol Wednesday.
CiCi Williams Steward, alongside her husband Will, expressed her unwavering support for Senate Bill 1, which is related to campground and youth camp safety, to the Texas Senate committee on Disaster Preparedness and Flooding.
Cecilia “Cile” Steward was 8 years old, and she was excited to go to Camp Mystic for the first time, her mother said.
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Camp Mystic is located in Kerrville, where at least 117 people died, including 37 children, in the catastrophic flooding in Kerr County. Nine of the victims were carried downstream into Kendall County. Two others remained missing, as of Wednesday.
Overall, at least 135 people died in the flooding across Central Texas.
“Texas summer camps must be properly equipped, trained, and held accountable, so that future generations of children can experience the joy of camp without being placed in preventable danger,” Steward said.
Camp Mystic is shown in Hunt, Texas on Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
“Three generations of women in my family went to Camp Mystic. This year, it was finally Cile’s turn,” Steward said. “For Cile, camp meant adventure, memories, friendships and lessons to carry for a lifetime. For me, it meant watching my child grow and learn but always under the assurance that she would be safe. Joy and growth cannot exist without safety.”
Steward went on to say that the assurance she received that Cile, along with the other young girls at the camp, was betrayed that day of the floods.
“Cile’s chance to experience camp only existed because I was ensured that her safety, and the safety of all the young girls, was paramount. I ask you, what could have been more important than that,” Steward said. “Obvious, common sense safety measures were absent. Protocols that should have been in place were ignored. As a result, my daughter was stolen from us. Cile’s life ended, not because of an unavoidable act of nature, but because of preventable failures, on just her fifth day of camp.”
Steward said the passing of SB 1 could “be the start of a promise” that the lives and deaths of the campers will bring change.
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“This legislation cannot bring back our daughters, but it is the beginning of change that must occur so that this tragedy never happens again,” Steward said. “In addition to the families that are here today and that lost their children, there are hundreds of other campers that were affected by this that survived. The survival guilt and trauma that they went through for many is unknowable. They will be dealing with this for the rest of their lives. It is unfathomable.”
Steward said her family continues to live “in a torture chamber of uncertainty” until Cile’s body is found.
“My baby girl is still missing,” she said. “The agony is relenting. We cannot begin to grieve or to honor the fullness of her short, beautiful life until she is recovered and laid safely to rest.”
