It’s been four months since the TODAY show host Savannah Guthrie’s 84 year-old mother Nancy Guthrie was kidnapped from her home in Tucson, Arizona. Sadly, no trace of Nancy has been found, and she remains missing at this time.
On Tuesday morning, Savannah broke down in tears on TODAY as she made an emotional plea about Nancy’s possible death.
‘We Are In Agony…’
During Tuesday’s episode of TODAY, co-host Craig Melvin announced some new information surrounding the case.
“This morning NBC News is reporting new information about one of the notes sent to multiple media outlets,” Melvin said.
NBC News then aired a report in which it was revealed that a ransom note received by the Guthrie family days after Nancy’s disappearance claimed that she had died. According to the outlet, the note contained no apology or request for payment for Nancy’s body.
“There is still no major update or break in the case,” said correspondent Liz Kreutz.
After the report ended, Melvin turned to Savannah and said, “The bravery and courage with which you have done this job every day since that happened, nothing short of remarkable.”
‘I love you guys, and I love this place,” Savannah said as she wiped away tears. “This is unusual and unprecedented — to say the least — to be sitting here.”
“But I can’t pretend I’m not here,” she continued. “And so since I am, I wanted to just take the opportunity to ask people, really to beg people, to come forward. Somebody knows something.”
Savannah Doubles Down
Referencing her older brother and sister, Savannah added, “This is a new story that today is on your radar, but this is the life that my sister lives, that I live, that my brother lives, that our extended families live, that our children live every day. And we are in agony and we cannot be at peace.”
“So no matter how much I try to come out here every day and to smile and find that joy — and I will, I promise I will — this is a moment to tell you that we need your help,” she stated. “We’re begging for your help. And I’m not gonna miss that opportunity.”
Savannah, who is a mother of two herself, ended her statement by referencing the $1 million reward that her family has offered up for any information on Nancy’s whereabouts.
“So please, if you’re watching, no matter how small, the reward is there,” she concluded. “You can tell us. It can be anonymous. Please do the right thing for us, for our family, for our children. We love our mom, and we’ll never stop looking for her ever.”
Check out Savannah’s full comments for yourself in the video below.
Nancy’s Abduction
Nancy was last seen on the night of Saturday, January 31. That evening, she had dinner with her daughter Annie and son-in-law Tommaso Cioni. They dropped her off at home afterwards at around 9:45pm, and she tragically hasn’t been seen since.
A masked intruder was captured on Nancy’s doorbell ring camera in the early hours of February 1. He managed to cover the camera with some plants before moving forward with the kidnapping.
The masked man was seen on the doorbell ring camera prior to the night Nancy was taken. This indicates that he may have been casing out her home.
No trace of Nancy has been found, and the desperate search for her continues.
Savannah Returns To TODAY
Savannah bravely returned to the TODAY show on April 6. She’d spent the previous two months in Tucson desperately trying to find her mother, to no avail. Savannah finally decided that she needed to get back to both her job and her own family, which includes her husband and two young children.
“I will not fall apart,” Savannah defiantly told her former TODAY colleague Hoda Kotb just before her return. “I will not let whoever did this take my children’s mother from them, I will not let them take my joy.”
“They will not take my sister’s joy, they will not take my brother’s joy,” she continued. “They will not take our love, they will not take our faith. But our anguish is real. We need help. We need someone to tell the truth.”
Savannah Cries ‘Every Morning’
Savannah revealed earlier this month that though she sees the TODAY show as being a “little respite” in her day, it does not lessen the agonizing pain that she feels about her mother’s disappearance.
“It’s always with me,” Savannah stated. “I cry every morning on the way to work, and I cry every morning on the way home. And I’m grateful to have good friends and to be able to come to such a beautiful and joyous and supportive place. Like so many people out there, you can hold all of these things together. I try to tell my kids that too. We can hold our sadness and we can hold our joy. And if you don’t believe it, just watch me.”
Savannah added that even when she’s smiling on TODAY, it doesn’t mean that she’s forgotten her pain.
“I know maybe people wonder, ‘Whoa, what’s going on? How’s she able to do that job? Is she not thinking about it? Did she forget?’ No, never. Never,” she insisted.
Savannah concluded by saying that when it comes to her mother’s case, “We still need everybody’s prayers. I wish someone would call and say what they know and tell the truth.”
Watch Savannah talk more about this in the video below.
This has clearly been an excruciatingly difficult time for Savannah, and for her entire family. Please join us in saying a prayer for them, and for the return of Nancy Guthrie.