Former Stockbridge residents in Texas help others, worry after deadly flooding
by Tina Cole-Mullins
When disaster strikes far from home, it’s easy to feel disconnected—until familiar voices break through the headlines. These people could be our former classmates or neighbors, friends or family, or maybe community volunteers. Suddenly, the disaster doesn’t feel so far away anymore.
Three people with links to Stockbridge—Meghan Gerisch, Lori Osborne and Darren Cowan—now live in Texas. While the recent catastrophic flooding was far worse than normal, all three are aware of the danger of flash flooding in the region.
On the July 4 holiday weekend, flash floods killed at least 135 people in Texas. Hardest hit was Kerr County along the Guadalupe River, about 60 miles northwest of San Antonio. In Kerrville, Texas, the water rose more than 26 feet in less than an hour just before daybreak, washing away homes, businesses, vehicles and people, with a terrifying force. Camp Mystic, a 100-year-old Christian girls camp located along the river, lost at least 27 campers and counselors.
Organizing relief efforts
Meghan Gerisch spent 40 years in Stockbridge and still owns a cottage in nearby Gregory. She now lives in Kingwood, Texas, near the flood-stricken regions. Gerisch has weathered multiple storms in Texas, including Hurricane Harvey. Her experiences fuel her resolve to help others.
After the recent disaster, she emerged as an essential responder—working to organize relief efforts and support the victims.
“We need manpower to walk the riverbanks and work the donation centers,” Gerisch said recently. “They’re already full of goods, which is amazing. Now we need people, and gift cards. That’s what makes a difference.”
Gerisch has been helping coordinate relief efforts through Kingwood High School and the Humble Intermediate School District (ISD). So far, more than 80 pallets of supplies and $40,000 in gift cards were distributed. Her work provides a lifeline and hope for families engulfed by uncertainty following the disaster.
Once rescued by National Guard
Lori Osborne, of Conroe, Texas, is a Stockbridge native now living near the San Jacinto River. This month of August 2025 marks 50 years since Osborne left Michigan during the Recession of 1975.
Now settled in Texas, she’s no stranger to the power of rising water. While not in danger from the recent crisis unfolding hundreds of miles away, the event stirs up a familiar unease.
“Back in the 1980s, we had to be rescued by National Guard trucks,” she recalls. “I never forgot. But I’ve never seen anything like this. I live about a mile from the river and I’m feeling nervous. But I’m fairly high and dry where I’m at.”
Under flash flood warnings
Darren Cowan is a former Stockbridge resident who now lives in Austin, Texas. He shared his view of the region’s vulnerability.
“It rained really hard here for several days. The ground is very hard and rocky, so it doesn’t absorb the water like Michigan—it just sits on top,” he said. “Kerrville got hit the worst. Flooding happens here regularly.”
Cowan said you hear the saying “turn around, don’t drown” in the area for a reason.
On that July 4th weekend, as flash flood warnings swept across Central Texas, major rivers surged past flood stage, prompting evacuations and emergency rescues. Cowan’s community, along with many others, was under alert as relentless rainfall overwhelmed the rocky terrain, sending water rushing across roads and into low-lying neighborhoods. Though Kerrville bore the brunt of the tragedy, the warnings and rising waters reached far beyond.
All photos by Meghan Gerisch. Printed with her permission.
