Savannah Guthrie will be back at the Today desk on April 6, even as the search for her missing mother, Nancy Guthrie, continues in Arizona, reports NBC News. In an interview with Hoda Kotb, Savannah Guthrie said returning to the NBC morning show feels like "part of my purpose right now," though she admitted it's difficult to imagine reentering a workplace built on "joy and lightness" amid her family's ordeal. "I can't come back and try to be something that I'm not," Guthrie said, per the AP. "But I can't not come back, because it's my family."
Guthrie's 84-year-old mother vanished on Feb. 1 after failing to appear for an online church service; investigators have described the case as a possible abduction but have released few details. Guthrie said her religious faith is anchoring her and recalled how her mother relied on the same after her own husband died in 1988, per NBC. She appealed again for information, saying her family "needs peace" and that "someone has it in their power to help."
Kotb announced Guthrie's return on air, with co-host Craig Melvin saying the team "can't wait to welcome her back with open arms." Al Roker, the Today show's weather guy, said her return date, which takes place on the day after Easter, has special meaning built in, per People. "What's wonderful, it's almost symbolic after Easter and the resurrection, the rising," he said. "I think as a family we'll hold hands and help her."