A family friend of NBC “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie described the disappearance of Guthrie’s mother as “absolutely heart-wrenching,” as the Tucson, Arizona, community prepares to hold a candlelight service Wednesday night to pray for the safe return of Nancy Guthrie.
Sally Shamrell, an actress and former reporter for KVOA, a local Tucson television station where Savannah Guthrie got her start, told CBS News that the Guthries are a “very revered family” in the area. Shamrell, who has known the family for over 30 years, said, “Nancy and Savannah have both contributed so much to the Tucson community. They’re just positive contributors and very faithful women. What’s going on is absolutely heart-wrenching.”
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie as a crime. However, no suspect or person of interest has been identified. Nancy Guthrie was last seen at her home on Saturday night but was not reported missing until she failed to show up for church on Sunday morning, Sheriff Chris Nanos confirmed.
Shamrell helped organize the vigil scheduled for Wednesday night at St. Philip’s in the Hills Episcopal Church after seeing Savannah Guthrie’s social media post on Monday asking for prayers.
In her post, Savannah wrote: “Thank you for lifting your prayers with ours for our beloved mom, our dearest Nancy, a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant. Raise your prayers with us and believe with us that she will be lifted by them in this very moment. We need you.”
The candlelight service is expected to begin at 6 p.m. local time and will be livestreamed on the church’s website.
Shamrell expressed hope that the event would provide comfort to the Guthrie family. “I know that the Guthrie kids, who are so, so missing their dear, dear mother — I mean, she is everything to them,” she said. “I just hope, if they see this, and they see the whole community’s come together, that they will know that they’re not alone. It’s a pretty dark time.”
She also shared how she reached out to former colleagues at KVOA to help organize the event. Describing the station’s staff as “very tight family members,” Shamrell noted, “Some of these people haven’t seen Savannah in 20 years, but at the twist of a dime, they said, ‘What do you need? I’ll be there.'”
Authorities believe Nancy Guthrie was abducted over the weekend from her home in the Catalina Foothills neighborhood of Tucson, where signs of forced entry were found. A small amount of blood found inside the house is currently being tested, according to a law enforcement source familiar with the case.
Sheriff Nanos mentioned that a ransom note was sent to a local Arizona news station following Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance. However, he could not confirm the authenticity of the note or its accuracy.
Anyone with information about Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance is urged to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s tip line at 520-351-4900.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nancy-guthrie-disappearance-tucson-church-vigil/
