A woman who disappeared 24 years ago has been located, revealing she had been living a secret life in North Carolina. Her family is now coming to terms with this shocking discovery.

Michele Hundley Smith, a mother of three, went missing in December 2001 at the age of 38. She left her Eden home to do some Christmas shopping and never returned, leaving her three children, who were 19, 14, and seven at the time.

After more than 20 years of searching, the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office announced on Friday that Smith has been found “alive and well.”

“I want to run outside and shout, ‘She’s alive, she’s alive,'” expressed Smith’s cousin, Barbara Byrd, in an interview with WFMYNews 2.

“For years, we were stuck between grieving and hoping… My biggest question now is, ‘What happened back in December? What made you leave? Why did this happen?'”

The sheriff’s office noted that Smith’s disappearance was a matter of investigation for several agencies, including the FBI.

On February 19, investigators received new information related to her case and made contact with her the following day, the release said.  

However, all the answers may not be found with Smith’s reappearance, as the sheriff’s office said Smith requested her location not be shared. 

Michele Hundley Smith, who went missing 24 years ago, was found on February 20 ‘alive and well’ in North Carolina 

Smith disappeared in December of 2001 at 38 years old while Christmas shopping, leaving behind her three children, aged 19, 14 and 7

‘I understand and respect that she doesn’t want any of us to contact her,’ Byrd told the outlet. 

‘I’m not angry…The biggest answer I had today was she was alive. Nothing else matters right at this moment.’

On Facebook, Smith’s daughter Amanda wrote a lengthy statement following the news that her mother had been found. 

‘As far as my opinions and feelings on my mom…I am ecstatic, I am p***ed, I am heartbroken, I am all over the map! Will I have a relationship once more with my mom? Honestly I can’t answer that because I don’t even know. My initial reaction would be yes absolutely but then I think of all the hurt…But even then, my mom is only human just as we all are,’ she wrote. 

‘When my mom was a part of my daily life, she showed me a love and bond that will never ever be forgotten. There were mother daughter arguments of course, but right now all I can remember are the smiles we shared, the times together that were happy and the love I felt!’

‘My dad has been in my daily life all of my life, and he shows me love and we have a life that will never be forgotten! There were father daughter arguments as well but all I remember are the smiles we have, the love I feel and the bond we share!

‘Both my dad and my mom deserve to have their choices and their feelings respected as well.’ 

Smith’s disappearance haunted her family for years, leaving them with so many unanswered questions. 

A Facebook page dedicated to her missing mother, Bring Michele Hundley Smith Home, said that Smith had been driving her forest green 1995 Pontiac Trans Sport van which was never found when she disappeared

‘I don’t know what exactly happened. I’m not even sure til this very day if you are still here on Earth or if you have passed,’ her daughter wrote on Facebook in 2024. 

‘All I do know is that you left a hole in people’s hearts! I cry and mourn for a relationship that will never again be, I cry and mourn for a relationship that was never had …and we will never know, will we?’

‘I love you and I miss you and that’s every single day. I’m angry because of the hurt but I’m mostly angry that my brother and sister had/have to feel hurt and pain. If I were to find you in life, if I was to find out that you did simply run away from everything… I am sure that I would still love you just the same,’ she said, adding that she believed she would still be angry for the pain her siblings also had to endure. 

A Facebook page dedicated to her missing mother, Bring Michele Hundley Smith Home, said that Smith had been driving her forest green 1995 Pontiac Trans Sport van which was never found when she disappeared. 

‘Michele would have never left her children by choice. We are desperate for answers and we are asking for community support and assistance in trying to find the truth on what happened to Michele and why she mysteriously vanished never to be seen again,’ the page said. 

‘There has been no real investigation into her disappearance to this day almost 20 years later…Lets try and end this nightmare for Michele’s loved ones and bring her home.’ 

The page is set to be repurposed for other missing persons cases.