Savannah Guthrie‘s pastor is speaking out amid the ongoing search for her mother, Nancy Guthrie.
Pastor Michael Rudzena shared his history with the family on the Today show, telling Hoda Kotb on Tuesday, February 10, that Nancy “visited” his church, Good Shepherd New York, over the years and would watch his services remotely following the coronavirus pandemic.
“She’s a strong woman and she is fiercely loving,” Rudzena said about his interactions with Nancy, 84, before her shocking disappearance.
Kotb, for her part, referred to Rudzena’s church as “a sacred place for both Savannah and her mom.” The pastor offered a message of hope for those supporting Savannah, 54, and her family at this time.
“Leaving the door open for hope is a way to fight against that sense of fatality or fatalism. It’s the sense that we all feel when bad things are happening, a sense of despair or gloom can sort of cloud our minds and hearts,” he noted. “And prayer is a way of channeling that feeling toward God with the hope that God will meet us in it and get us through to the other side. And that’s the confidence of faith.”
Rudzena reflected on the search for Nancy, adding, “I think we’re all putting ourselves in the position of knowing that dark experiences can be overwhelming, and when we think of Nancy, our heart goes out to Nancy.”
He concluded: “We don’t know what we don’t know, and yet we know that light shines in dark circumstances and it’s light that gets us out of them, and I think that image of a guiding light is powerful. And our hope is that God is a guiding light right now for her.”
News broke earlier this month that Nancy was reported missing in Arizona. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said in a press conference that Nancy has “no cognitive issues at all.”
“She’s very alert, she’s of good, sound mind,” he said before noting that Nancy is “not in good” physical health. “I hope we find her safe and sound, but we can’t ignore what’s in front of us.”
According to authorities, there were “concerning circumstances found at the home.” Nanos also noted that the homicide team was involved as search efforts continued.
Savannah’s family subsequently released a statement, which read, “We can confirm this is a missing persons case, and the family is working closely with local law enforcement.”
Sheinelle Jones and Craig Melvin addressed Nancy’s disappearance during a broadcast of Today in Savannah’s absence.
“We want to get right to what is a deeply personal story for us,” Melvin, 46, said. “Nancy Guthrie, Savannah’s beloved mother, has been reported missing in Arizona.”
The duo read an additional statement from Savannah about her mother’s whereabouts.
“On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support,” the statement read. “Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom. We thank law enforcement for their hard work on this case and encourage anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.”
Nanos later confirmed to Us Weekly that Nancy’s disappearance was being investigated as a crime after she was seemingly taken while she was asleep.
“Something unusual at that house occurred that made us go, ‘Wow, something’s wrong here. Something doesn’t fit,’” he shared earlier this month. “We’re gonna pull all the stops and go at all angles. We really do hope it’s a search-and-rescue mission and we find her and she’s safe and sound. But it would be unjust if we didn’t look at what’s in front of us and go, ‘We need to act.’”
Authorities subsequently started investigating numerous alleged ransom letters, including a note demanding $6 million in Bitcoin. Savannah and her siblings have shared additional updates while addressing their mother’s kidnappers.
“We received your message and we understand,” Savannah said in a February 7 video while holding hands with siblings Annie and Camron. “We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace. This is very valuable to us and we will pay.”
Most recently, Savannah shared a new video statement pleading for her missing mom’s safe return hours before the latest ransom deadline, saying on Monday, February 9, “We believe our mom is still out there. We are in an hour of desperation.”
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