Volunteers planting saplings at Flying K Ranch. Photography by Thomas Meredith
More than 50 volunteers came together to plant nearly 1,000 native trees, bringing new hope to a landscape forever changed by the 2025 floods.
Some places hold generations of memories. For Kathryn Kotrla, Flying K Ranch is one of them. Nestled along Sandy Creek near Leander, the 800-acre property has been part of her life since childhood, offering a place of peace, connection, and refuge. When the devastating floods of July 2025 swept through Central Texas, the ranch became an unexpected center of hope. Known as “Camp Rebel,” it welcomed hundreds of volunteers who helped search for missing neighbors and clear debris from Sandy Creek. More than a year later, on November 7, 2026, volunteers returned to Flying K Ranch with a different mission: to help bring life back to a landscape that had given so much to its community.
For Kathryn, these trees are part of a landscape that has held her family’s memories for generations.
That Saturday, more than 50 TreeFolks volunteers came together to plant nearly 1,000 saplings representing over 30 native tree species. Carefully selected for their ability to withstand the Texas heat and thrive in local conditions, these young trees will help restore wildlife habitat, support healthier soil, and rebuild the creekside landscape over time. The event marked the first planting project of TreeFolks’ Arraigados en la recuperación initiative, a long-term effort to help landowners restore areas damaged by the floods. Every sapling planted was a small but meaningful investment in the land’s future, made possible by people who believe that recovery is something we work toward together.
Valerie Tamburri, TreeFolks’ Director of Reforestation & Lead Arborist, is reading a letter by Kathryn Kotrla to the volunteers.
Nearly 1,000 saplings may seem small against the scale of what was lost, but together they represent an extraordinary commitment to what comes next.
Although a recent injury prevented Kathryn from joining the volunteers in person, her presence was felt throughout the morning. A heartfelt letter she wrote to the group helped open the event, reminding everyone that the land beneath their feet was more than a planting site. It was a place filled with history, loss, and possibilities for the future.
“This Ranch, this land, has always been a place of solace and healing for me, and my late husband and I dedicated the land to support others who were touching and improving the lives of the most disadvantaged and wounded among us.”
Her words gave the day’s work a personal meaning, connecting every shovel of soil and every new tree to the people who have cared for this land across generations. Once a gathering place for neighbors helping neighbors through disaster, Flying K Ranch was again bringing people together, this time to help restore what the flood had changed.
Recovery doesn’t happen in a single day. It happens when communities continue showing up, long after the headlines have faded.
The work at Flying K Ranch is only the beginning. Through Rooted in Recovery, TreeFolks will continue working alongside flood-affected landowners across Central Texas to restore damaged landscapes, support healthier waterways, and help native trees return to places where they are needed. Trees cannot replace everything families have lost, and healing takes much more than planting. But with the care of landowners, the dedication of volunteers, and the generosity of supporters, we can help these landscapes recover while standing beside the communities who call them home. What began with nearly 1,000 young trees is part of something much bigger: a shared commitment to caring for the land and one another, for years to come.
One day, the trees planted here will offer shade and shelter to people and wildlife who may never know the volunteers who planted them.
Be part of what comes next. Learn how you can support Arraigados en la recuperación at treefolks.org/roots.
This Rooted in Recovery planting event was made possible through the generous support of H-E-B, Tesla, and our incredible community of supporters.
Author
Héctor González, TreeFolks’ Communications Strategy Manager. Photography by Thomas Meredith
