Nothing but gratitude and hope. On Saturday, January 2, Craig Strickland’s wife, Helen, spoke out to thank family and fans for their thoughts and prayers as rescue teams continue to search for her missing husband.
“Every time there’s a post from some random person who I have never met before that says, ‘Hey, I don’t know you, I’m reading this, I’m praying for you, my heart goes out to you,’ it’s almost like I don’t have to hurt on my own,” she told local station 40/29 News.
Country singer Craig, 29, has been missing since he and his friend Chase Morland weathered winter storm Goliath to go duck hunting on December 26.
Moreland’s lifeless body, along with the duo’s capsized boat, was found two days later, but Craig remains missing.
"He's in a better place," Helen said of her husband on Saturday. "It's more painful for us to think he could be underwater. Still we want that closure in seeing him."
On New Year’s Eve, Helen, 28, updated fans with news that the search area had been cut by 50 percent, signaling some hope that Craig would be found soon.
The next day, she told 40/29 that she remained hopeful amid doubts about Craig’s whereabouts.
“To see how much work can be done in a specific area, it has given us a lot of rest because we feel like that’ll give us a lot of hope they will find Craig soon,” she told the news outlet on New Year’s Day.
The former Miss Arkansas also noted that she is relying on her faith to get her through this difficult time.
“While we hurt and experience the worst pain of our lives, we sometimes believe that God might not be there with us listening when we cry out to Him,” she wrote on Twitter. “But then, when we least expect it, He speaks and comforts us in such beautiful ways.”