Houston city and fire department officials on a fall morning recognized Houston Fire Department volunteers who deployed to Central Texas after the July 4, 2025, floods that surged the Guadalupe River and killed more than 135 people, including children at summer camps.

The ceremony in the Legacy Room brought elected leaders, firefighters and family members who lost children in the storm together for a series of remarks, presentations and the distribution of commemorative shadow boxes and pendants. Mayor John Whitmire and union and department leaders praised volunteers’ search-and-rescue efforts and described the city’s support for families.

“Floodwaters don't stop at city lines, and neither does compassion,” said the event host. The speaker said crews from Houston packed gear and deployed on their own time and expense to assist in Hunt County and other affected areas during what the speaker called “the worst natural disaster in Texas history.” The opening remarks said the Guadalupe River surged nearly 30 feet during the storm and that “more than 135 lost lives.”

Marty Langton, president of the Houston Professional Firefighters Association Local 341, told the room volunteers did not seek recognition. “Firefighters are notorious at not very good at asking for help,” Langton said, adding that many responders “did it because it was in their heart and they thought to themselves, if this was my family, what would I have done?”

Captain Alexander Odeski, assigned to Engine Company 58, described working alongside off-duty and retired first responders, health-care workers, construction workers and civilians in search-and-recovery operations. “I saw firsthand volunteers and first responders working through fatigue and injury, and not once did they ever quit,” Odeski said. “I promise you this, they will never be forgotten.”

Jenny Gedden, whose daughters Ellen and Gwen were at a summer camp that flooded on July 4, 2025, thanked the volunteers who located personal items that helped identify victims and who presented the family with a commemorative shadow box. “They left their families and sacrificed their PTO and sick time to go find our girls,” Gedden said. “They risked their lives and saw things that they cannot unsee, and they expected nothing in return.”

Gedden also thanked specific Houston firefighters named in the ceremony, including Tyler Graff, Captain Michael White and Tim LeBlanc, and acknowledged the Hunt Volunteer Fire Department and task-force partners for providing operational command, equipment and lodging during deployments. The event noted donations and gifts from the Houston Professional Firefighters Association Local 341 and the James Avery Jewelry Company; some volunteers handcrafted the shadow boxes and pendants presented to families.

Twelve children’s names were read during the presentation of shadow boxes and pendants. Among those named were Chloe Childress, Catherine Ferruzzo, Mary Kate Jacoby, Margaret Bellows, Laney Landry, Blakely McCrory, Molly DeWitt and Ellen Gedden. A family representative accepted boxes on behalf of other missing children when appropriate.

Twelve-year-old Gwen Gedden addressed the room. “The only thing that made me feel safe was that there are firefighters searching for my sister,” she said. “Your kind hearts made a light flicker in the dark darkness, and I'm so touched that people went out of their way to do what was right.”

Chaplain Tyler Hicks of the Houston Fire Department closed the program with a benediction that included a passage from Paul’s letter to the Philippians and a prayer for responders and grieving families.

Mayor John Whitmire told families the city stands ready to assist. “I stand ready and the city stands ready to do anything we can to assist your families going forward,” he said. The ceremony concluded with refreshments and photo opportunities.

The event was a recognition and condolence ceremony; no formal policy actions, votes or directives were recorded during the program.