Media

Since July 2025 our family has spoken with local and national reporters about what happened at Sandy Creek, what recovery has actually been like, and where the systems meant to help fell short. We do this because visibility has brought this community resources it would not otherwise have received.

For journalists

Press contact: press@asheracres.org

We aim to respond within one business day. If you are working to a tighter deadline, say so in your subject line and we will do our best.

Photographs. We keep a set of pre-flood, post-flood, and rebuild-progress images available for editorial use. Please credit Courtesy of the Asher Acres family. Email us and we will send the full-resolution set.

Please note: the July 5, 2025 flood killed neighbors of ours. When reporting on this community, we ask that you treat those families' losses with the care they deserve. We speak only to our own experience.

Left to right: Donna Wright, Ashlee Willis, Brandy Gerstner and Gregg Gerstner, leaning in together around a table in a brightly lit diner, all smiling at the camera.
Available for editorial use. Credit: Courtesy of the Asher Acres family

Coverage

“Disasters don't discriminate; disaster recovery does.”

— Ashlee Willis, Community Impact, July 2026

Headlines link to each outlet's article, where their reporting and photography live.

Featured

A television camera and monitor on set. Ashlee Willis is visible on the monitor, seated and mid-interview under studio lighting.

Discovery Channel

“The Texas Flood” — In the Eye of the Storm

Season 4, Episode 9 · Aired August 30, 2026 · National broadcast documentary built from real-time phone footage, security recordings, and firsthand accounts. Ashlee Willis appears.

“No One Came” — Texas Country Reporter. Interviews filmed at Asher Acres on how Sandy Creek organized its own recovery. Watch on YouTube.

One year on

Community and rebuilding

Advocacy, policy, and testimony

KPRC 2 Houston reports on Ashlee Willis's testimony before the Texas House Select Committee on Disaster Preparedness & Flooding, July 31, 2025 — four weeks after the flood. See also the official witness list.
“Sandy Creek residents demand accountability after deadly Hill Country flooding” — KPRC 2 Houston. Senate committee testimony.

Background for reporting

DetailFact
LocationSandy Creek, northwestern Travis County, Texas (Leander area)
EventJuly 5, 2025 Central Texas floods
The propertyAsher Acres — established 1991, a 36-year family homestead and artisanal spice business
LossesThree family homes, the family spice business, barns, vehicles, livestock, equipment, and gardens
Family namesBrandy Gerstner, Gregg Gerstner, Donna Wright, Ashlee Willis
Organizations co-foundedSandy Creek Alliance; Travis County Recovery Alliance; REBUILD.US (national — founding members, Disaster Survivor Advisory Committee)
The rebuildHomes raised ~10 feet in the air to sit 2 feet above the floodplain, solar with battery storage, rainwater harvesting, accessibility lift, riparian and pollinator restoration
Fiscal sponsorGifted Dreamers, Inc. — 501(c)(3), EIN 39-3863796, Austin, Texas
Campaign$1,443,000 total project; $600,000 remaining

A note on spelling: it is Ashlee Willis — not “Ashley.” The property is Asher Acres, and the organizations are the Sandy Creek Alliance, the Travis County Recovery Alliance, and REBUILD.US — styled in capitals, with the dot.

For funders and grantmakers

If you are evaluating this project, the coverage above is the independent record of the work: the flood, the year of recovery, the organizing, and the testimony before the Texas Legislature.

Our measurement framework, UN Sustainable Development Goal alignment, and data-ethics commitments are on the Impact & Accountability page. Itemized budgets, architectural and site plans, and references are available on request from grants@asheracres.org.

Support the rebuild