KERRVILLE, Texas — A $287,500 grant from the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country will fund a new safety program for youth camps in the Hill Country, according to The Safety Navigator, the nonprofit receiving the funding.
The grant was awarded through the Kerr County Flood Relief Fund and will support a program that The Safety Navigator said will work with camps in the region to develop and test safety training, emergency preparedness resources and other tools.
The organization said the resources developed through the program will eventually be made available to camps nationwide at no cost.
The Safety Navigator was founded in October 2025 following the July 4, 2025, floods in the Hill Country. According to the organization, the floods claimed the lives of children and camp staff at camps along the Guadalupe River.
The organization said its founders created The Safety Navigator to help Hill Country camps and camps across the country translate new youth camp safety legislation into practical safety procedures.
The grant will establish a dedicated Hill Country camp safety program, according to The Safety Navigator. Planned activities include end-of-season reviews with camp leaders to identify areas that worked well and areas that need improvement.
The organization also said the funding will support safety training for camp directors, leadership and seasonal staff. Training will cover areas including aquatics, transportation and emergency response.
Other planned resources include a transportation safety toolkit addressing vehicle use, staff driving rules and the vetting of bus and charter companies, according to the organization.
The Safety Navigator also plans to develop a Hill Country version of its AI-assisted risk assessment tool. The organization said the regional version will include risk categories and controls specific to the area.
The program also will include a drill package with new drills and tabletop exercises based on regional hazards, according to The Safety Navigator.
The organization said it plans to develop an AI-powered emergency action plan builder to help camps create customized emergency response plans.
The grant also will fund a summer content series documenting safety work at Hill Country camps and a locally hired program coordinator who will serve as a point of contact for camps participating in the program.
The Safety Navigator said the tools developed through the program will be designed for use outside the Hill Country and made available to camps nationwide at no additional cost.
“The Hill Country is where this started for us, and we’re grateful to be pioneering it here too, alongside the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country,” said Charlee Johnson and Marleyna Palin, co-founders of The Safety Navigator.
“This grant lets us build the industry’s best practice safety materials with a community that needs them, so Hill Country camps can lead the response for camps everywhere, not just the recovery,” they said.
Austin Dickson, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, said the investment is intended to support long-term recovery efforts while improving camp safety.
“Long-term recovery means preparing communities for what comes next,” Dickson said. “Camps are an important part of life in the Hill Country. This investment will help protect campers here and make practical safety resources available to camps across the country.”
Tim Huchton, president and CEO of Mo-Ranch, said The Safety Navigator has worked with camps to develop safety tools and resources.
“The work that The Safety Navigator team has done to assist camps such as my own better prepare and operationalize our safety protocols has been incredible,” Huchton said.
The Safety Navigator is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in October 2025 and launched nationally in February 2026. The organization says its mission is to make safety resources free and accessible to youth camps.
The Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country is based in Kerrville and serves 10 counties, according to the foundation. It manages charitable funds and grants supporting nonprofits, scholarships and community initiatives.
The program is funded through a grant from the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country’s Kerr County Flood Relief Fund.
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