BELMONT, N.C. — "I am just sitting here going crazy. I'm literally going crazy," said Tracie Blanton, Andy Tench's mom.
After weeks of waiting, Blanton told WCNC Charlotte reporter Tradesha Woodard that nothing could have prepared her for this truth.
"I'm sitting here looking out the window, trying to see if he is going to walk up, and he could -- he might maybe [say] it was all a mistake," she said.
This comes after a man, identified as 26-year-old D'Shaun Montrell Robinson, was arrested in connection with Tench's disappearance.
Robinson told Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police he put the Tench's body in the trash, according to an affidavit obtained by WCNC Charlotte.
Andy Tench was last seen several weeks ago celebrating his 31st birthday in Charlotte. Tench went to The Bar at 316 in Charlotte but never came home. His car was found abandoned in Monroe days later.
It's a truth that has Blanton losing breath she can’t seem to catch.
"I just want him back," she said.
Blanton said her son will never return home, a sting of death she says will haunt her forever.
"I'm so, so sorry I didn’t go with you that night to protect you. I'm so sorry," she said.
"[Robinson] didn’t just hurt Andy, he hurt his mama too. I'm dead inside."
Tracie Blanton said she’s drowning in guilt and grief along with another huge stressor: bills. She says without Tench's help, she doesn’t know if she’ll be able to keep his car or their home, a place where some of their last memories were made.
Blanton said those small moments all hold a big piece of her heart.
"We are locking Andy’s room up. It's staying, nobody’s going to touch it," she said.
Blanton says the world feels a lot dimmer without her son's bright light, but she’s asking for the community to help her family hold on to all that’s left. She said it’s the only thing that will help her survive this storm.
"We are hoping to get all we can get," she said.
Along with bills, Tench's family says they have no money for a funeral or memorial. Anyone who wishes to help out can do so by clicking this link to contribute to their GoFundMe.
Contact Tradesha Woodard at twoodard1@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
If your loved one was impacted by this incident, WCNC Charlotte hopes to make this process less painful with our More Than A Number initiative. With your help, we want to share who your loved one was with our viewers in North Carolina and South Carolina. When you're ready, fill out the form below or send us photos, memories and other details about them to desk@wcnc.com.