Family, cops plead for missing mom

Joanne and Nicole DeGuio have scoured Needle Park in Kensington. They've knocked on pimps doors and they've handed out condoms to prostitutes, all in the hopes of finding whatever information they can about their missing loved one, Amanda.

Amanda, 25, is Joanne's daughter and Nicole's little sister. She was last seen at the family's Drexel Hill home in June.

Amanda's addiction to drugs had kept her away from home before, but she'd always call and check in on her mother, her sister and her two young daughters, Sophia and Ava.

But that hasn't happened this time. Her family reported her missing in August. They haven't heard a thing from Amanda since she left home that June day. She's missed her children's birthdays, holidays and custody hearings.

This morning, Joanne and Nicole stood next to Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood at a news conference and begged for any word from Amanda or from anyone who may know what happened to her.

"We know she's in a bad way and in a bad place," Joanne said. "If she's not alive I need to bring her home. I need to at least have an answer for her children."

"I hope I'm wrong," Chitwood said. "I hope we can get her back safe."

Amanda, a graduate of Haverford High School, dreamed of becoming a brain surgeon when she was young. But after the birth of her first daughter, she suffered an infection which required several surgeries. She became addicted to the prescription pain killers she was given and later branched out into heroin, according to her family. She even engaged in prostitution to support her habit.

But she would always call, her family said, and she would never just leave her two daughters.

"She's still a person, she's a daughter, she's a sister, she's a mom," Nicole said. "She's just a lost soul right now."

Since Amanda's disapperance, Nicole has texted her mother a prayer every morning. Today, Nicole held a prayer card in her hands during the news conference.

But they need more than a prayer now. If you have any information about Amanda's disappearance, please call Upper Darby Police at 610-352-7050.