CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW)- The family of Zach Marsh, while devastated and grief-stricken, took a few minutes to publicly thank law enforcement and the people in the community who helped in the search for his son, Zach Marsh.

Zach went missing on December 20, 2019, and following multiple searches and an investigation by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, his body was recovered from the Cumberland River on Sunday, January 26.

A fisherman reported a body in the Cumberland River, just five miles upstream from where Zach ‘s car had been abandoned on Jarrell Ridge Road.

According to MCSO spokeswoman Sandra Brandon, the medical examiner’s preliminary report has not been released and his cause of death and manner of death remains under investigation.

The case remains open, Brandon said.

“We will continue to provide support to the family as they need it,” she said.

ClarksvilleNow.com reached out to Erik Marsh, Zach Marsh’s father, who understandably did not wish to give an interview during this time of grieving.

He gave a statement publicly on the Find Zach Marsh Facebook page, thanking everyone who helped, prayed or assisted his family in any way during their search for Zach.

A GoFundMe account arranged to pay for Zach’s burial expenses surpassed its goal in just  24 hours, with dozens from the community contributing and leaving kind words of encouragement to the family both there and on social media.

Erick Marsh said a private ceremony would be held for Zachary.

Erik Marsh released the following statement on the Find Zach Marsh Facebook page:

“From the moment this ordeal started, we have found ourselves doing things and experiencing feelings all within a short period of time. I don’t really know what to say or how to express the feelings.

I would like everyone to know that we will be holding a small, private, family-only ceremony for Zachary. He was a private young man and we will be continuing that in his remembrance.

From the first moment our calls went out for help in finding our son, the response from this community, both in the Clarksville area and beyond, has been humbling. We’ve received not only prayers and well wishes but also assistance and offers for assistance from across the nation. From our family and friends pulling together, to all of you. We’ve had strangers from Maine to Louisiana to Colorado to California contact us and offer whatever assistance we needed. I worry that the words I choose won’t capture or convey the level of gratitude that Zach’s whole family feels towards all of you.

From the Sheriff’s Investigators that lead the investigation, the instant friends we made with those who answered our calls for help within hours of us knowing Zach was missing, soldiers from Fort Campbell who used their vacation to help search, Sheriff’s Officers, firemen, and women helping on their days off, our co-workers and friends coming to be by our side, some traveling hours just to be here for us, news organizations eagerly helping us get Zachary’s story out and increasing the area of those helping us, and not just those of you who were able to be here in person. … Thank you to everyone who shared our posts and Zachary’s story as if he was your own son, brother, friend…the truckers who spread word along their routes, the bikers, the Jeepers and Offroad organizations, the Missing Person’s organizations, the volunteer search and rescue groups, veteran organizations, random people not only from Clarksville but also Nashville, Huntsville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Texas and beyond…to say what all you’ve done for us, for Zachary, is awe-inspiring just doesn’t quite cover how we feel.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!  With all of our gratitude.” – Zachary Marsh’s Family