The Jenna & Friends host shared that her mom, former First Lady Laura Bush, was a drama counselor at Camp Mystic, where at least 27 girls and counselors died, as of July 7, following the devastating flooding on the Guadalupe River.
“My mom was a counselor there, but also so many of my friends were raised at this camp,” Jenna said on Today, July 7. “Texas camps are institutions, as you just heard, where many family members—generations—this camp was 100 years old. Grandmothers, mothers, kids have all gone there.”
Jenna, who shared that many of her friends and their kids were there last week, praised the community for coming together amid the tragedy.
“The stories that I heard over the last couple days were beautiful and heartbreaking,” she said. “Texas has a type of resilience where they’re generous people, where people want to reach out and help.”
“Texas camps are really special because you’re thinking about 90-degree weather, no air conditioning,” the 43-year-old—who attended the nearby Camp Longhorn during her childhood—explained. “My kids are at camp in Texas, and my husband said, ‘Why are we sending our kids to Texas, to camp? It’s hot!’ And it’s because of the love that’s there.”
