Today’s Savannah Guthrie is marking six months since her mom, Nancy Guthrie, was abducted with an impassioned plea to locate her mother.
“This is our beautiful Mom. Six months ago, someone took her out of her bed in the dead of night,” Savannah, 54, captioned a photo of her mother via Instagram on Saturday, August 1. “We have lived every moment, every breath, and every heartbeat in agony and despair ever since. Every day, we wake up and try to be strong and go on because that’s what our joyful and resilient Mom taught us to do, but make no mistake — our hearts are in ruins.”
Savannah acknowledged that she and her siblings have spent “every waking moment thinking,” longing and searching for Nancy’s whereabouts.
“There is a hole inside us that can never be filled. There is an ache that cannot be softened, and there is a determination in us that cannot be quenched to find out what happened to her, so that we can give her the dignity of a proper goodbye — a celebration of her remarkable life that she so deserves,” she wrote on Saturday. “We are begging for help. We are desperate. We need someone to come forward. Someone knows something. Someone suspects something. Someone recognizes the writing in the ransom demand notes. Someone has noticed something different, strange, troubling or just unusual — perhaps with someone they deeply love. Perhaps they are afraid to come forward. Perhaps they are conflicted. Perhaps they are angry or upset for being in this situation. There is a way out — to tell what you know. You can do so anonymously. The reward is available. There is a way to end this situation and do the right thing.”
Savannah stated that her family will “never stop looking for answers,” holding onto their faith until then.
“We are real people, facing real grief, doing the best we can, and counting our many blessings along the way— most especially the prayers and love from good people, which we feel deeply,” the TV journalist said. “We need your prayers, we need your kindness. We need the good to be stronger than the evil. If you are following this story for entertainment or for profit, you are not on her side — you are part of the harm perpetrated against her. We will never stop looking for answers — and we will never stop looking for the light. We will always be hoping and praying and believing in the best of our world — in spite of circumstance. This is what our faith makes possible. Please. Bring her home.”
Nancy was last seen on January 31 in Arizona. One day later, she was reported missing by a family member who called 911. While authorities have released Nest doorbell footage of a masked figure approaching Nancy’s home, no suspects have been named. Authorities and the Guthrie family are offering rewards for credible leads.
Savannah, who briefly stepped back from the Today show amid Nancy’s appearance, has since returned to the NBC morning show and has continued to issue public pleas — both on the live broadcasts and social media — for people to come forward with information. On July 27, Savannah issued a video statement that was captioned, “Bring her home.”
“I’m coming on today with a very specific message,” Savannah said in her Instagram video at the time. “It has been months since our mom was taken from us. Our family is in agony. We are in a nightmare that will not end. Nothing about our situation has changed. We have done our part, but we will never stop looking for her. We will always ache for her. Feel that hole in our hearts.”
She continued, “The world can be a cruel and unforgiving place, and I know that you have tried to do things the right way. So I’m asking you, begging you, to do the right thing now. Make the right choice. Help us find her. Tell us where to look for her. I truly believe it is never too late to do the right thing. Help us bring this situation to an end. For all of us — no matter where we’ve been and what we’ve done — I believe there is always, always a way home. Please make the right choice.”
Savannah has also publicly commented on reports that one alleged ransom note alluded to Nancy’s death.
“I don’t have any comment on this story. I’m not involved in our coverage, but I can’t pretend I’m not here,” Savannah said during the Today show broadcast in June. “Since I am, I just wanted to take the opportunity to ask people — really, to beg people — to come forward.”
She added, “Somebody knows something. This is a news story today that is on your radar, because this is the life my sister lives, that I live, that my brother lives and our extended families live, that our children live every day. We are in agony. We cannot be in peace.”
