My son Andre turned 23 on May 22. On June 14 he was shot in the head in Harlan, Kentucky. I kept him on life support for three days until his body started dying. On June 17, 2018, I held my son’s hand as he gasped for breath, still fighting to stay alive. I held my baby’s hand and had to tell him it was OK to let go…that he fought a good fight, but it was too much for him to survive. After he took his last breath, his heart remained beating for another two minutes. My life ended there with his.
My son loved his friends and family and always put others first. He was Army Infantry and was going into Special Operations in November. He had his very first child, a baby girl on November 17, 2018, on the five-month anniversary of his death. There was nothing my son wanted more than to be a daddy. That was ripped away from him and her. The circumstances surrounding his case were suspicious from the beginning. And now, almost eight months in, his case remains unsolved. The endless sleepless nights are filled with me wondering who, why and trying to put the puzzle together without all the pieces. It feels like yesterday he was murdered. I will fight for justice for him until I take my last breath. Now I’m left with memories, pictures, messages. I’m left with trying to figure out what to tell his baby happened to her father if this never gets solved. Life as I know it is gone. Feels like my soul was ripped from my chest, and I struggle to find reasons to get out of bed every morning. If you have children, hold on to them…if I learned anything from my child’s death, it’s that tomorrow isn’t promised.