San Antonio, Texas — Texas band honors Camp Mystic victim Eloise "Lulu" Peck with song premiering before Fox SA and News 4 Documentary on the Floods of 2025 at the San Antonio Film Festival Thursday night.
A young girl who lost her life in last summer's devastating Kerr County floods is being remembered through music.
On Thursday, during the 32nd San Antonio Film Festival, Texas band Blackwater Draw will premiere "Dear Eloise" before the screening of FOX San Antonio's documentary, Rising Waters: When Warnings Went Silent.
The song honors 8-year-old Eloise "Lulu" Peck, one of the Camp Mystic campers who died during the July 2025 Hill Country floods. It also serves as a tribute to all those who lost their lives in the disaster.
For lead singer Cami Caldwell, the tragedy became deeply personal after she saw a photograph of Eloise.
The Texas native, who now lives in Nashville, said the little girl looked so much like her own niece that she could not stop thinking about her.
"I was completely shocked to see a photo of Eloise because she looked exactly like my niece," Caldwell said. "They had very similar facial features, and it was just shocking. It became really personal to me. I was imagining what I would do if my niece was missing."
Caldwell and her band, originally from Lubbock and now based in Nashville, wrote "Dear Eloise" with the permission and blessing of Eloise's parents, Todd and Ashley Peck.
Before recording the song, the band mailed the family an engraved USB drive containing the music, along with a letter explaining why they felt compelled to write it.
After the Pecks gave their approval, the band returned to the Texas Hill Country to film the music video along the Guadalupe River.
Band member Tiffy Nelson said filming at the river was emotional but meaningful.
"Being on the river, it was very hard and very sad," Nelson said. "But we knew with this video we could shed some light on everything that happened, keep these girls remembered and their names spoken, and get donations to their foundation."
In another deeply personal connection, Caldwell's niece, the young girl whose resemblance first reminded her of Eloise, portrays Eloise in the music video.
The song is now available on all major streaming platforms. Proceeds from every download and stream benefit the Living for Lulu Foundation, established by Eloise's family to help people and animals in need. The QR code is below.
For the members of Blackwater Draw, the project became more than a song.
Band member Berklee Louise said both she and Nelson understand the pain of losing a parent, making Eloise's story especially meaningful.
"I lost my dad suddenly, and Tiffy lost her mom when she was 10," Louise said. "When we knew what happened with Eloise and felt so connected to her, we knew the only thing we could do was try to keep her light going."
Blackwater Draw will premiere "Dear Eloise" before the screening of Rising Waters: When Warnings Went Silent at 7 p.m. Thursday during the 32nd San Antonio Film Festival at the historic Gunter Hotel on Houston Street in downtown San Antonio.
It will be followed by a Q&A with photojournalists and reporters from our stations who were there from the first day and into the difficult weeks that followed.
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