Savannah Guthrie will return to her co-anchor role on the Today show on Monday, more than two months after her 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, went missing. Nancy was last seen the night of Jan. 31.
Guthrie has said she was inspired by her mother to resume work despite her grief. “I won’t let sadness win. For her,” she told colleague Hoda Kotb in an interview last month.
Guthrie recalled watching her mother endure hardship after the early death of Nancy’s husband, Charles Guthrie, who died at 49. Nancy supported the family as a single mother, and Guthrie said she saw her persevere after tragedy. That example helped motivate her return, though she acknowledged uncertainty about being back in the studio while questions remain about her mother’s whereabouts.
Guthrie had been scheduled to host coverage of the Winter Olympics in Milan, but on Feb. 1 the family announced Nancy had been abducted. Guthrie flew from New York to her mother’s home north of Tucson, Ariz., where she found signs that “something was very wrong,” including blood on the front doorstep and a Ring camera that had been removed.
Police released surveillance footage showing a masked, gloved man tampering with the doorbell camera in the early hours of Feb. 1. Investigators have continued to probe Nancy Guthrie’s movements after she returned from a family dinner on Jan. 31.
The family has publicly addressed ransom notes and posted video messages offering to pay for Nancy’s return, but they say they have not received a response. Guthrie has repeatedly pleaded with anyone who has information to come forward, saying, “We need an answer, and someone has it in their power to help.”
The search remains ongoing with no major breakthroughs. The Guthrie family is offering a $1 million reward for information leading to Nancy Guthrie’s return.