HOUSTON – Nearly three years after Austin Kanuch was stabbed to death in his sleep, his family is turning grief into determination, unveiling a memorial bench in Cypress Park while a $40,000 reward remains on the table for information leading to an arrest.
The bench is part of the We Remember Memorial created by Tom Ramsey’s office in partnership with Crime Stoppers of Houston. It features a QR code that pulls up details about Kanuch’s unsolved murder, giving the community an immediate way to learn about the case and submit tips.
The emotional unveiling brought tears, matching the rain falling from the sky as loved ones gathered to remember the father of three.
His mother, Celene Miller, remembered her son’s spirit.
“I would always tell him, ‘There’s my Awesome Austin’ or, ‘Go have an Awesome Austin day,’” Miller said.
Kanuch’s wife, Mary Kanuch, spoke publicly for the first time since her husband’s 2023 murder.
“He meant so much to all of us,” she said.
Investigators said someone entered the couple’s home on Greenleaf Lake Drive and stabbed Austin in his sleep. His wife and baby were in the home at the time and were not harmed. The only known evidence of a suspect is surveillance footage showing someone on a mountain bike near the home. To this day, no suspects have been identified.
Mary shared a tender memory of how she and Austin first connected in college, briefly dating for just one month before life pulled them apart.
“At one point during that time, I gave him a leather teak keychain. I had no idea something so small would mean so much to him,” she said.
Sixteen years later, the couple reunited, and Austin had never let go of the keychain.
“To me, it was a simple gift showing I cared, but to him it was something more — a symbol from the girl from way back when that showed him kindness. He never forgot about me,” Mary said.
Miller said she wakes up every morning waiting for the call that will change everything.
“I wake up every morning, and it’s a new day wondering. I keep waiting for that phone call to come: ‘We’ve made an arrest,’” she said.
The family is urging anyone with information to come forward, reminding the public there are 40,000 reasons to make that call.
“We do have 40,000 good reasons for them to call Crime Stoppers with a $40,000 reward,” Miller said. “We will never, ever give up.”
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office says investigators are following every tip and every lead in the case.
Anyone with information can report it anonymously to Crime Stoppers of Houston at 713-222-TIPS (713-222-8477).