She Ran a Vintage Store. Now She’s Reuniting Flood Victims With Precious Belongings.
Peter Holley
July 10, 2025
Texas Monthly
By Peter Holley
Story Overview
After the July 2024 flash floods devastated the Texas Hill Country, Dondi Voigt Persyn created a Facebook group—Found on the Guadalupe River—to help survivors recover priceless belongings swept away in the flood. What started as a few posts quickly turned into a network of over 36,000 volunteers posting photos of found items—family Bibles, wedding dresses, baby pictures—with the hope of returning them to their owners.
Why It Matters
In the wake of disaster, it wasn’t just infrastructure that was lost—it was identity, history, and memory. Dondi's grassroots effort is a powerful reminder that compassion, community organizing, and digital connection are essential parts of civic resilience. This act of mutual aid highlights how everyday people can become keepers of hope.
Civic Pathways
Key Pathway: Community, Culture & Belonging
Sub-Pathway: Arts, Culture & Creative Expression
Civic Depth: 🧡 Find Your People (Level 2)
Engagement Role
This story exemplifies the Bridge-Builder and Connector roles—using community care and storytelling to rebuild trust, human dignity, and connection in a fragmented world.
Keywords
Disaster Recovery, Community Resilience, Compassionate Response, Civic Care, Lost & Found, Digital Mutual Aid, Flash Flood, Texas Hill Country
Call to Action
Join or create hyperlocal Facebook groups for neighborhood resilience.
Organize volunteer hubs that prioritize dignity, care, and ownership.
Amplify stories like Dondi’s that show what it means to be civically engaged outside traditional institutions.
