With 2 years since Eagan’s Bryce Borca went missing, parents learning to co-exist with grief

With two years since Bryce Borca went missing from Eagan, some people might think his parents “must be getting better,” but they said Wednesday that their “grief will always be the same as it was on Oct. 30, 2022,” the last day the young man was seen.

Their grief is “quieter, less jagged, and a bit more private,” Troy and Carina Borca said in a statement. “… Life around this grief continues to re-build and we learn how to co-exist with it. This was not our plan — this was God’s plan.”

The last known location of Borca, who was 23 at the time, was Fort Snelling State Park at the end of Yankee Doodle Road in Eagan. He was trying to walk home after a night out with friends and hasn’t been found.

The Borca family shared a search update Wednesday: “There has been a lot of activity in the last year, such as ground searches with canines, water searches with divers and cameras, searches through marshy muck, and efforts to chase down any leads, but there are no further answers.

“It’s not for a lack of effort or innovative thinking,” they continued. They thanked Eagan Police for their continued efforts, and professional search and recovery teams “that do the dirty and difficult work in treacherous terrain. We are forever grateful for trying to bring our family answers.”

Eagan police have said previously there was no indication of foul play in Borca’s disappearance.

What’s known about disappearance

On Oct. 30, 2022, Borca took a ride-share back to Eagan. Friends said they’d been drinking on a party bus.

The ride-share dropped off Borca and two friends in the 3200 block of Hill Ridge Drive in Eagan at 2:08 a.m., according to a search warrant affidavit previously filed by police to collect Borca’s electronic devices to search for evidence to assist in locating him.

Borca left to walk back to his residence in the 3400 block of Promenade Avenue in Eagan, which is about two miles away. At 2:34 a.m. Oct. 30, 2022, Borca spoke with friends using video FaceTime and said his phone had 2 percent battery remaining and he didn’t know where he was. The video appeared to be in a heavily wooded area.

He shared his location from his phone, which put him in a wooded area off Minnesota Highway 13, the opposite direction of his apartment. The call ended and his friends believed his phone ran out of battery power.

Searches covered acres of terrain and many tips came in, including surveillance videos from the community and businesses in the area.

Helping other families

Troy and Carina Borca announced last year they’d started Bryce’s Blessings, a nonprofit to honor their son and support other families coping with the loss of a child.

In Wednesday’s statement they wrote: “Two years. We can’t believe it’s been that long since we’ve seen Bryce’s infectious smile or heard his sweet voice.

“Every day is heavy — especially anniversaries,” they continued. “The last 731 days have been the worst of our lives. Not an hour goes by that we don’t think of or miss Bryce. At times, it takes our breath away when we see a special picture or relieve one of our thousands of memories.”

They said grief and child loss never leaves anyone, but their love is “everlasting until we meet again someday in heaven.”

The work the Borcas and others have done through Bryce’s Blessings has been fulfilling — it’s supported hundreds of families, and allowed them “to reconnect with old friends, support new friends in their own journeys, and see Bryce’s name making an impact,” his parents said. “It’s Bryce’s blessing that continues to give back to us and others and helps to guide our work.”

Information about Bryce’s Blessings can be found at brycesblessings.org.