The river. The land. The people. Those were three themes, Dondi Persyn, Boerne resident and perfumer, selected as inspiration for an order commissioned by Kerrville’s Economic Development Corporation a few years ago. Little did she know that she would revisit these themes when she stepped into the role of co-founder and initiating steward of an effort to reconnect people with some of what was lost in the July 4th flooding.
Although Persyn’s work has varied throughout her lifetime, a common theme has emerged. She is a passionate person, committed to community and connection. “Whatever it is that brings healing and beauty into my world, and however I can serve my fellow man, I do that, and I do it full force,” Persyn shares.
This past summer, Persyn had planned a two-and-a-half-month leave for a medical procedure. Then, with little notice, the procedure was canceled, and days later, her time off turned into an unimaginable endeavor.
When the floods hit, Persyn first went to Kerrville to ensure the memory of her family was intact at the cemetery, where her great-grandparents are buried. Then, she reached out to some of her clients, offering supplies and support with the search and rescue efforts. But as those efforts transition into recovery, Persyn recalls, “It was very strange to stand there and listen to the chainsaws trying to get to a body. It was surreal. And I knew in that moment reverence was of the utmost importance.”
The ravaged land from the flooded river would leave an indelible mark on people, Persyn knew, and the aftermath would involve the stories and memories of loved ones and lives once lived. So, she launched The Found Project, a search and rescue operation to reunite people with the belongings—clothing, pictures, heirlooms, and much more—swept away in the torrent.
“We just started finding things,” Persyn says. “I started the website because I knew Facebook would be the quickest way for it to be effective, and it took on a life of its own.” Her Facebook page, “Found on the Guadalupe,” soon exploded to nearly 60,000 members, needed an approximately 1,800-square-foot warehouse to hold recovered items, and attracted hundreds of volunteers. Persyn believes that all of that work has led to thousands of reunifications.
Even as the project gained notoriety and national attention, Persyn says that much of the work has taken place outside the spotlight. “It has made it to buffer camps, to the families of the deceased.” Many unifications are conducted privately at local churches and through family liaisons. Persyn says, “We want to make sure that they feel comfortable being able to get their items back.”
Persyn attributes the project’s success to its standards, systems, and support. “First and foremost, I treated everything like it belonged to my grandchildren,” she says. With that in mind, the team implemented systems to manage and track found items for reunification. From event planning and working with textiles to volunteering at a women’s shelter, Persyn says, “I feel like all the steps in my life led me to this moment, where I was equipped and able to manage in the best way.”
Through the emotional weight of this work, Persyn says she was anchored by the support of her family and friends. “Dozens of my friends from this community showed up regularly, embodying the true spirit of neighbors caring for neighbors,” she says. “Even my grandchildren, as young as five, have helped me clean laundry.”
She also credits their success to her behind-the-scenes team, including co-founder Deanna Lindsay, fellow administrator Teri Hauer, as well as page moderators Megan Wilson, Kim Kutcher, Yvonne Faldyn, and Janice Riley. Persyn says they’ve had to deal with thousands of bad actors on the Facebook page and have even been targeted by hackers.
A few months ago, they lost access to the page and to their personal pages without any promise of restoration. Persyn says the community jumped into action and helped get the accounts reinstated. This served as a reminder for Persyn. “I put so much of my world into this digital form, and what matters the most is the connection.”
This work continues to keep Persyn filled with gratitude. From benefactors like Cord Shiflet, Clint Orms, and the Mission Haus Foundation, to the teams of volunteers, she is grateful for how the project has become a community initiative that fosters connection. Persyn says, “It became a whole community doing the work, and that had great significance, because each person was part of the healing process.”
Now several months in, Persyn originally thought the project would wrap up at the end of the year, but she has realized it will be needed well into 2026. “In the beginning,” she says, “we all talked about 90 days, but were aware that this could go on for years.” She says the group will intensify its efforts to return items before the end of the year, but will continue working, evolving the form as needed.
What happens to items that remain unclaimed? “My long-term goal is that all of it becomes repurposed and used in a very reverent, beautiful way that honors people and the lives that were lost and just everything that was lost,” Persyn says. There are plans for the Reverence Project to work with local quilters, artists, and craftspeople to transform unclaimed and surrendered items, ensuring the community's memory is preserved with care and beauty. “We’re not going to throw it away,” she insists.
Persyn has returned to work, but she finds herself revisiting the scents she created for the Kerrville EDC all those years ago. The themes she drew on before—the river, the land, the people—now carry new meaning. “I’ll spend these holidays reflecting on how this came full circle, how my works connected with each other. How all the work that I've been doing became connected in this strange way… what it means and what God had in store for me.”
She notes that the process of cleaning and preserving items has its own symbolism. “You can’t just wash the river out of the clothes.” It’s a restorative process that parallels the project’s mission, Persyn says. “It's about these families and their belongings and trying to assist in this healing process.” It’s a process, like the project, that will continue. Despite the destruction and loss, Persyn is hopeful. “That's what a community does: we take painful things and we process them. We tell the story we remember, and we honor it, and we heal.”
found-project.com | facebook.com/groups/foundontheguadaluperiver
“It's about these families and their belongings and trying to assist in this healing process."
PULL QUOTE 2: “I knew in that moment reverence was of the utmost importance.”
PULL QUOTE 3: “That's what a community does: we take painful things and we process them. We tell the story we remember, and we honor it, and we heal.”