{"id":122388,"date":"2026-02-25T20:09:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T01:09:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388"},"modified":"2026-02-25T20:09:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T01:09:16","slug":"daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388","title":{"rendered":"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

A North Carolina<\/a> mom reported\u00a0missing more than two decades ago\u00a0and recently found alive was dealing with a tumultuous marriage and struggling with alcohol abuse, according to her daughter.<\/p>\n

Michele Lyn Hundley Smith disappeared with a trace in Dec. 2001 and was until last week an unsolved missing person\u2019s case. The woman, now 62, was located Feb. 20<\/a> in North Carolina after detectives received new information about her case.<\/p>\n

In a 2018 interview on “The Vanished Podcast,” her daughter Amanda Hundley said that her mother\u2019s marriage was unraveling under the weight of alcohol abuse, infidelity and escalating marital arguments.<\/p>\n

Smith, then 38, left her home Dec. 9, 2001, telling her family she was going Christmas shopping<\/a> in nearby Martinsville, Virginia. She never returned. For years, her daughter believed her mother had simply walked away.<\/p>\n

MISSING NORTH CAROLINA MOM FOUND ALIVE AFTER 24 YEARS REVEALS WHY SHE LEFT<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Smith had recently lost her job at a veterinary practice after being fired for drinking on the job<\/a>, Hundley said.<\/p>\n

“My dad didn\u2019t like the fact that my mom hid her drinking. I knew about it, and I was the only one, and I felt, you know, I was young, and I felt obligated not to say anything to betray my mom,” Hundley said on the podcast.<\/p>\n

According to Hundley, her father suspected the drinking but did not fully understand the extent of it until after Smith vanished.<\/p>\n

“He said, \u2018Do you know where she kept the bottles at?\u2019 And I showed them we had a little red building outside, and it was full of rum bottles, the empties, the ones that she had already drunk,” Hundley recalled. She was 14 at the time.<\/p>\n

The couple\u2019s relationship had also deteriorated. Hundley said both of her parents had affairs during the marriage. She described frequent arguments that “got physical a few times.”<\/p>\n

Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page told Fox News Digital that there were no records of domestic abuse involving the couple.<\/p>\n

FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME TEAM ON X<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

In the months before Smith disappeared, the couple were no longer sleeping in the same bed, according to Hundley. She said her mother often slept in a chair in the living room while her father remained in the bedroom.<\/p>\n

“If she wanted to leave my dad, that\u2019s one thing, but to leave us, I just don\u2019t see it happening,” Hundley said in the 2018 podcast episode.<\/p>\n

SIGN UP TO GET TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

On Tuesday, Sheriff Page said that Smith told police that she left her family due to ongoing domestic issues.<\/p>\n

SEND US A TIP HERE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“She relayed that she had left on her own accord,” Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page said. “She did reference some domestic issues. When we made contact, she was safe.”<\/p>\n

Page told Fox News Digital that he has spoken with the district attorney’s office and no criminal charges will be filed.<\/p>\n

LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? FIND MORE ON THE TRUE CRIME HUB<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

In a lengthy\u00a0Facebook post<\/a>\u00a0on Feb. 22, her daughter Amanda Smith wrote that the last 48 hours were a “whirlwind of emotions” for her family.<\/p>\n

“You are free to think whatever, of course, just please don’t put them out there for my family to see. Please respect my family bc [because] we are hurting and going through a lot,” she wrote.<\/p>\n

“My dad has been through so many accusations since all the way back then… Even before social media was big, where we liv[ing] in a small town, there were many ppl [people] acting as if they just knew he was involved… Well he wasn’t! Of course, I never thought he was… My father has been through so much and I want it made clear that while\u00a0their marriage had issues<\/a>\u00a0(just as many marriages go through) that my mom did not leave simply bc of a bad marriage. Everyone is entitled their opinions but please remember that my father has been proven innocent.”<\/p>\n

Fox News Digital’s Julia Bonavita and Ashley Carnahan contributed to this report.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source – https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/us\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-24-years-before-turning-up-alive <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A North Carolina mom reported\u00a0missing more than two decades ago\u00a0and recently found alive was dealing with a tumultuous marriage and struggling with alcohol abuse, according […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"twitter_2902945987_2902945987":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[16563],"tags":[],"stock_ticker":[],"class_list":["post-122388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-market-news","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nDaughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive - Wall Street PR<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive - Wall Street PR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A North Carolina mom reported\u00a0missing more than two decades ago\u00a0and recently found alive was dealing with a tumultuous marriage and struggling with alcohol abuse, according […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Wall Street PR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/WallStreetPR\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-26T01:09:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/businessman-showing-business-evolution1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"715\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"423\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/person\/6e00efa2abc413bdc0bca51a90c54d36\"},\"headline\":\"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-26T01:09:16+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388\"},\"wordCount\":691,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Market News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388\",\"name\":\"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive - Wall Street PR\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-26T01:09:16+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/\",\"name\":\"Wall Street PR\",\"description\":\"Latest News From WallStreet\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Wall Street PR\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/brand-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/brand-logo.png\",\"width\":537,\"height\":70,\"caption\":\"Wall Street PR\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/WallStreetPR\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/WallstreetPRs\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/person\/6e00efa2abc413bdc0bca51a90c54d36\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/360_F_336393115_5gCUfwn76x3MJaCJMYDKLoRebkC8QyrL-300x300.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/360_F_336393115_5gCUfwn76x3MJaCJMYDKLoRebkC8QyrL-300x300.jpg\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/author\/admin\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive - Wall Street PR","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive - Wall Street PR","og_description":"A North Carolina mom reported\u00a0missing more than two decades ago\u00a0and recently found alive was dealing with a tumultuous marriage and struggling with alcohol abuse, according […]","og_url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388","og_site_name":"Wall Street PR","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/WallStreetPR\/","article_published_time":"2026-02-26T01:09:16+00:00","og_image":[{"width":715,"height":423,"url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/businessman-showing-business-evolution1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"admin","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/person\/6e00efa2abc413bdc0bca51a90c54d36"},"headline":"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive","datePublished":"2026-02-26T01:09:16+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388"},"wordCount":691,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#organization"},"articleSection":["Market News"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388","url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388","name":"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive - Wall Street PR","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-02-26T01:09:16+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/daughter-detailed-family-turmoil-before-north-carolina-mom-vanished-for-24-years-before-turning-up-alive-122388#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Daughter detailed family turmoil before North Carolina mom vanished for 24 years before turning up alive"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#website","url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/","name":"Wall Street PR","description":"Latest News From WallStreet","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#organization","name":"Wall Street PR","url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/brand-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/brand-logo.png","width":537,"height":70,"caption":"Wall Street PR"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/WallStreetPR\/","https:\/\/x.com\/WallstreetPRs"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/person\/6e00efa2abc413bdc0bca51a90c54d36","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/360_F_336393115_5gCUfwn76x3MJaCJMYDKLoRebkC8QyrL-300x300.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/360_F_336393115_5gCUfwn76x3MJaCJMYDKLoRebkC8QyrL-300x300.jpg","caption":"admin"},"url":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/author\/admin"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122388"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122388\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122388"},{"taxonomy":"stock_ticker","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cablemanpro.com\/wallstreetpr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/stock_ticker?post=122388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}