A 49-year-old Richland grandmother was missing for about a week before her body turned up in the Columbia River last week.
Debra Tilley’s family was at the center of her life, her daughter Nicole Butler told the Tri-City Herald. Now they are left raising money for her funeral while hoping for answers about how she died.
“There are a lot of things that don’t make sense,” her sister Kandi Asucion told the Tri-City Herald. “She was loving, and caring. .... She would do anything she could for anybody. She had a really kind heart.”
Tilley, a Circle K manager, stopped responding to calls and text messages from her family on Oct. 28. It was a sudden departure from how she normally interacted with her family, Butler said. When they asked about where she was, her boyfriend told them that he didn’t know.
They are hoping the public might be able to share information with the police about when she disappeared.
“Regardless if we called or texted, she would respond,” Butler said. “(Getting) no response is what threw us.”
A passerby spotted Tilley’s body in the water near the shore of the Columbia River along the Hains Levee Trail at the 1000 block of George Washington Way about 12:45 p.m. on Nov. 4.
The body was discovered in the heavy brush, but it’s not clear where or how she went into the water.
Asucion said she would never abandon her children and didn’t have any problems with addiction or her mental health.
When she was found her shoes and socks were missing. It is possible that she lost them after going into the water, but family members don’t believe it.
An autopsy was conducted last week. Benton County Coroner Bill Leach said they didn’t find any wounds on the body, but can’t determine the cause of death without a blood test.
They are asking anyone who may have information about her or a 911 call about a woman in the water to call Richland police through the non-emergency line at 509-628-0333.
Tilley’s family started a GoFundMe to help cover funeral expenses for the grandmother who “meant the world to so many,” the campaign started by Asucion and Butler said.
Her family was a major part of her life, Butler said. She also loved listening to music and journaling.
“She was a very strong, independent single mother of five,” Butler told the Tri-City Herald. “She always made sure there was food on our plate. She was a wonderful grandmother.”
She didn’t have life insurance or money saved to help cover the funeral costs.
“While trying to process this devastating loss, we are also struggling to cover funeral expenses, outstanding bills and possible legal fees to recover her personal belongings from her apartment,” Butler said in the GoFundMe campaign.
They said they can’t do this alone and are asking for any help people could offer. They are hoping to give Tilley the “proper goodbye and service” that she deserves.
“Any donation, no mater how small, would mean the world to us,” Butler said in the GoFundMe. “From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for your kindness, compassion, and support during the hardest time of our lives.”
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