South Florida mom says missing 28-year-old daughter found safe
A South Florida mother who was pleading for help in locating her 28-year-old daughter who hadn't been seen or heard from in almost a week says she was found safe.
Gena Sims' family said they believed she returned to South Florida from a trip to Houston last Friday. They said Spirit Airlines told them Sims boarded and then landed at Miami International Airport. After that, they said her phone had been going straight to voicemail and didn't respond to any calls or text messages.
According to her Instagram page, Sims founded the Autism Theater Project because her younger sister, Olivia, is on the spectrum. Sims also helps care for the 20-year-old as a home health nurse.
"Hi, my name is Gena Sims, and I run the Autism Theater Project," Sims started a video shared on her Instagram last month.
Family members told CBS News Miami that the project, along with her music and helping to care for her younger sister, are major parts of Sims' life. The family said there was no activity on her social media when she was missing.
Her mother, Christine Sims, said her daughter is normally busy but also reliably responsive.
"Well, she's very, very preoccupied and busy," she told CBS News Miami on Thursday before Gena was found safe. "She's a very busy person, a very hard worker, very dedicated to what she's up to, but I reach out to her, she's gonna respond. It may not happen right away, but she's definitely gonna respond and usually it's pretty quick."
The family shared a screenshot with CBS News Miami of what they said was the last text message sent from Sims' phone.
The thread started with a message sent from her mom at 9:26 p.m., reminding her to call her grandmother. A response came at 11:44 p.m., saying, "Hi, I had a change of plans. I'll be addressing an emergency."
That was the last message from the phone. Questions inquiring about the emergency went unanswered. Sims' voicemail was full.
Her mother told CBS News Miami that she was worried.
"I'm concerned that her phone seems to be missing, that somebody had texted something on her phone Friday night that was not her. It was not sounding like her and it's been a week almost," Christine Sims said before her daughter was located. "This is crazy."
According to her social media pages, Sims attended New World School of the Arts and went on to attend Carnegie Mellon University. In addition to her work with the Autism Theater Project, Sims is also known in the community as a singer performing at local gigs.
Her family was desperate for answers and had been urging anyone who may have seen Sims to come forward.