THE TRAGIC death of Gabby Petito captured the attention of Americans nationwide in 2021 and is a story still being told today.
Since the vlogger’s disappearance, her mother, Nichole Schmidt, has not shied away from the media and continues to seek justice for her daughter.
Nichole Schmidt is Gabby Petito’s mother[/caption]
Who is Gabby Petito’s mom, Nichole Schmidt?
Nichole Schmidt is famously known as the mother of Gabby Petito.
She welcomed her daughter on March 19, 1999, with her ex, Joe Petito.
Tragically, Gabby died by strangulation in August 2021, a crime that Nichole believes was committed by her fiancé Brian Laundrie while on a cross-country road trip.
On Thanksgiving Day of 2021, Nichole took to her social media profiles to share a tribute to her late daughter, offering gratitude for her life.
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“Gabby will forever remind me to be grateful for every moment, every breath, and every memory,” she wrote.
“I will cherish what I’ve had, and have in the present, always. Live with love, laughter and gratitude.”
Was Nichole Schmidt on TODAY?
Since Gabby’s death, Nichole has made several public appearances, including one on NBC’s TODAY.
On August 4, 2022, she revealed on the show that The Gabby Petito Foundation would be donating $100,000 to the National Domestic Violence Hotline in memory of her daughter.
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“We’re trying to do good for Gabby, and for everybody else,” Nichole told NBC News senior national correspondent Kate Snow, via TODAY.
“Our story begins because of domestic violence tragedy, and we don’t want to see that happen to anybody else.”
“Every potential call that’s coming in is someone’s life, and that’s how we have to think about this.”
“Time is precious, lives are precious,” continued Nichole.
She then went on to discuss Brian’s notebook, where he seemingly admitted to killing Gabby by writing: “I ended her life. I thought it was merciful, that it is what she wanted.”
“It shows that was his character,” Nichole said of the journal on TODAY.
“Even in his last moments he wanted to make sure he looked like the good guy, right? That’s ridiculous. We know how she died.”
Her appearance on TODAY comes just one month after a Florida judge allowed a lawsuit filed by Gabby’s parents against the Laundries to proceed.
A few weeks after her TODAY appearance, Gabby’s family filed a $50million wrongful death lawsuit against the Moab City Police Department, accusing them of failing to properly investigate her domestic violence case, according to NBC News.
The lawsuit stems from body camera footage, that was later released during the search, and showed the 22-year-old distraught after she got into a physical altercation with Brian.
At the time, neither of them wanted to press charges, claiming that they loved each other, NBC notes.
Does Gabby Petito have siblings?
Prior to Nichole and Joe’s divorce, they also welcomed a son, TJ.
Shortly after Gabby’s death, TJ shared a heartbreaking Instagram post about his sister, revealing that his heart was “shattered.”
“I don’t even know what to say. I’m at a total loss. My heart is shattered,” he wrote at the time.
Since then, his account has gained thousands of followers, and he now uses it to post about his sister and the foundation.
“Follow me on tik tok for more info about the foundation and what we will be doing moving forward. Thank you for the support,” his bio reads.
