When deadly flash floods hit the Hill Country and Central Texas over the Fourth of July weekend, families were left in shock and grief. At least 130 people lost their lives, many of them children. As the waters receded, another wave came—grief, and the overwhelming task of planning funerals no one expected. In the middle of this heartbreak, one man stepped forward—not with words, but with something deeply personal.
Trey Ganem, a casket maker from Edna, Texas, decided to help in a way that only he could. Through his business, SoulShine Industries, he offered to design and donate fully customized caskets, free of charge, to the families of the flood victims. His mission was simple: to bring comfort, dignity, and representation of life to those lost too soon.
Ganem isn’t new to this kind of work. He’s from Kerrville and has become known for responding in times of large-scale tragedy. In 2022, he made 19 personalized caskets for the children killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. In 2017, he did the same for the victims of the Sutherland Springs church shooting. And even before those events, his journey began in 2014 when he designed caskets for a family who lost five children in a fire.
This time, he’s pledged to build and donate 27 custom caskets for the flood victims. Each casket takes between four to five hours to design, and under normal conditions, costs between $3,000 to $4,000. But none of these grieving families are being asked to pay.
“It comes from my heart,” Ganem said during an interview at his workshop. “It’s not about painting a casket, it’s about telling their story and representing their life.”
Each casket is created with personal touches that reflect who the person was. One child loved dinosaurs, so Ganem filled the design with the prehistoric creatures. A young girl from Beaumont got a rose-themed design. Another casket had horses for a father who adored them. One mother’s casket featured a dream catcher, just as her family requested. Every one of these pieces, Ganem says, is made not just for burial, but to celebrate a life lived.
“This has just been really wild, the way everything has happened. I’ve had four families call today, and they’re still waiting on their loved ones being found, so this one has been really hard. But we’re doing it to show the love and letting their soul shine.”
Ganem shared.
Ganem is not doing this alone. His team works nonstop, and he’s joined forces with two other Texas-based companies — The Graphix House and Solart Design Graphics and Printing — who are donating their services to make it all possible. Ganem called them his “dream team,” and credits their help as essential in finishing the caskets in time.
To make his work sustainable, Ganem also started a nonprofit organization. This allows him to continue offering caskets at no cost to families in need, especially during times of crisis.
Even though he’s helped hundreds of families over the years, some losses still hit him hard.
“When you’re working on a smaller casket, it hits you hard. I have kids, I have grandkids. There’s not words that can describe this.”
Ganem said.
People from all over Texas are now contacting him, and while he wishes he could help everyone, he asks families to reach out directly so he can coordinate each project personally.
In a moment when many feel helpless, Trey Ganem’s gesture is more than a donation. It’s a reminder that even in the worst of times, people can show up for each other in meaningful, human ways. He’s not just making caskets — he’s giving families something priceless: a final gift that reflects the life and love of those they’ve lost.