Quick Summary
- Franklin Graham and Kathie Lee Gifford urge prayer for Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother.
- Blood found in Nancy Guthrie’s home raises concerns of foul play.
- Authorities seek public assistance and offer a $2,500 reward for information.
Christian leaders, including Franklin Graham and Kathie Lee Gifford, have issued calls to prayer amid reports that blood was found in the home of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie’s missing 84-year-old mother, Nancy, raising fears she may have been the victim of foul play.
“I am devastated for my friend Savannah’s beloved mother, and I’m keeping her and her family in my prayers since I heard this awful news,” Gifford wrote in a post on X on Monday. “Please join me in bombarding heaven with your prayers, too. I cannot even imagine the pain that they are in. Only God can comfort.”
Evangelist Franklin Graham also urged prayers, writing, “Savannah Guthrie, who America knows as one of the hosts of the NBC Today Show, is in the news because her 84-year-old mother is missing from her home in Arizona and foul play is suspected. I know she and her family would appreciate your prayers for her mother’s safe return.”
Guthrie, who was absent from the “TODAY” show on Monday and Tuesday, also voiced her gratitude for the support in a Monday night Instagram post and asked for prayers for her mom’s safe return.
“We believe in prayer. We believe in voices raised in unison, in love, in hope. We believe in goodness. We believe in humanity. Above all, we believe in Him,” Guthrie wrote in a caption to a photo that reads “please pray.”
“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,” she added. “We need you.”
Authorities said blood was found inside the Tucson home of Nancy Guthrie, intensifying concerns that she may have been forcibly taken. She was last seen Saturday night at her residence, and investigators said they believe she may have been taken against her will, possibly in the middle of the night.
“We know she was harmed at the home, but we don’t know to what extent,” Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said, according to the Arizona Daily Star.
Family members went to the home Sunday afternoon after she failed to attend church that morning, according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety. Her wallet, cellphone and car were found inside the house, but she was not there.
At a news conference on Monday, Nanos asked the public to report anything unusual or any possible sightings. A tip line was established Monday evening, and the Sheriff’s Department is offering a reward of up to $2,500 for images, videos or information that leads to an arrest.
“We don’t need another bad, tragic ending,” Nanos said. “We need some help.”
Nancy Guthrie does not have cognitive issues, Nanos said, but has physical challenges and is in need of medication that can be fatal if not received within 24 hours.
“She is very limited in her mobility, we know she didn’t just walk out of there, that we know,” Nanos said. “There were other things at the scene that indicate that she did not leave on her own.”
Law enforcement sources, who were not authorized to discuss the investigation publicly, said there were signs of forced entry at the home. It was not immediately clear whose blood was found.
Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: leah.klett@christianpost.com
