The momentum continues. We’ve welcomed another nonprofit search and rescue organization to our efforts, and by Monday, we’ll have expanded teams in the field.

We continue our systematic search for Charles. Today's efforts focused on drone operations with newly deployed analytics tools, allowing us to survey the terrain with greater precision. We have been encouraged by volunteer search and rescue organizations reaching out to offer support, and we need more help. If you have SAR experience, drone capabilities, K-9 teams, or other specialized skills, please contact us at julia@bringcharleshome.com. Your knowledge and resources are invaluable to our efforts. Our resolve remains unshaken.

Thanksgiving Message from Hosch & Morris, PLLC

On this Thanksgiving Day, Charles's law firm has shared a message of gratitude—for the search and rescue heroes who have worked tirelessly in the Georgia mountains, for the community that has rallied around our family, and most of all, for Charles himself and the life of purpose he has lived.

Read the firm's full Thanksgiving statement: https://www.hoschmorris.com/privacy-plus-news/thanksgiving-2025

We remain grateful for everyone who continues to search alongside us.

The search continues. Thank you for not giving up.

#BringCharlesHome

We have entered the second phase of our search for Charles with enhanced coordination and expertise. Today, we enlisted a distinguished leader in search and rescue operations to guide our continuing efforts. Two dog teams, along with a dedicated group of volunteers, conducted targeted searches across Blood Mountain. Seeing this continued determination strengthens our resolve and our hope. We look forward to working with our new professional team starting on Monday.

We’ve launched this dedicated website to help bring Charles home. Please also follow @BringCharlesHome on Facebook and Instagram.

Union County has paused its active search operations while awaiting new information or clues. Today’s search produced no new findings after almost two weeks of exceptional, round-the-clock efforts. This does not mark the end of the search; the case remains active, and search and rescue personnel will continue to pursue any new clues or credible information that arises.

We are forever indebted to the search and rescue teams who navigated treacherous terrain in challenging conditions with heroism, skill, and tireless dedication. Their commitment to finding Charles has been nothing short of remarkable, and we will be always grateful for their courage and compassion.

Our own search efforts will continue. We are planning the next phase and will share details as they develop. Please check this website in the days and weeks to come. 

In this moment of uncertainty, we turn to Charles’s favorite verse, John 1:5: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Charles has been that light to so many—his family, his students, his colleagues, his friends, his community. His wisdom, kindness, selflessness, and unwavering integrity have illuminated countless lives, and his light burns in every heart that loves him.

We carry that light with us as we search. We will not stop. We will bring him home.

Multiple dog teams, search and rescue personnel, family members, and community volunteers deployed to the Blood Mountain Wilderness area today but were unable to locate Charles. Dog team operations will be suspended indefinitely. Formal search and rescue efforts will continue for one more day tomorrow. We are praying for a miracle and remain grateful to every person who has searched, supported, and hoped alongside us.

Today’s search was strengthened by Blairsville community members, including the Chief of Operations for the Union County Fire Department, who has been leading all search and rescue efforts from the beginning. While we did not find new clues today, we remain hopeful that tomorrow’s deployment of the dog teams will yield positive developments. We are grateful for the unwavering support of this community and all who continue to search.

We continue our search for Charles this morning with renewed determination. While formal operations are paused, we are conducting focused search efforts with experienced hikers and former military personnel on the ground, supported by drone operations. The weather conditions are better than forecasted. 

While we look for Charles, we want to share his words with you—the benediction he offered at the close of his final class. In these words about living a life of purpose, you’ll find the wisdom, grace, and hope that Charles has always embodied. May his voice guide us forward, just as it has guided so many.

To Charles’s students, colleagues, and all who love him: we have not stopped, and we will not stop. We will find him.

BENEDICTION 2025

Dog teams conducted extensive searches in a narrowed area today but were unable to obtain definitive hits. With significant rain expected tomorrow, formal search operations will be suspended temporarily.

We remain profoundly grateful to the 268 search and rescue professionals who have dedicated themselves to finding Charles.

Search dogs have detected additional indications in two primary scent pools. Dog operations will continue tomorrow, though rain may present challenges. Search efforts will proceed regardless of weather conditions. We are deeply grateful for the commitment, compassion, and grit of all search and rescue teams.

Today’s search efforts yielded encouraging developments:

Today’s Operations:

• Additional K-9 indications have been identified

• Drone operations continued throughout the day

• Additional personnel joined ground search teams

Tomorrow’s Plan:

The same focused strategy will continue, with specialized K-9 teams remaining deployed in the area.

Reminder: We are asking that no media helicopters or aircraft fly over the Blood Mountain search area. Please continue helping us spread this message.

IMPORTANT REQUEST FOR MEDIA:

We are deeply grateful for media coverage helping to spread awareness about Charles’s disappearance. However, we urgently request that no media helicopters or aircraft fly over the Blood Mountain search area.

Aerial media presence interferes with critical search operations, including:

• Drone reconnaissance and tracking technology

• K-9 search teams that require minimal noise and air disruption

We understand the desire for aerial footage, but these operations could significantly compromise search effectiveness and delay efforts to locate Charles.

We will provide updates and information as they become available. Thank you for respecting the needs of search and rescue operations and helping us bring Charles home safely.

Search and rescue teams received a strong indication from K-9 units near the Appalachian Trail, giving them a specific area to concentrate their search efforts. This development will allow search teams to focus their resources on a targeted location.

Tomorrow’s operations will continue with additional K-9 teams. Multiple teams will be deployed to priority search areas.

The search continues with determination and hope.

Critical Request for the Public:

Multiple specialized K-9 teams, including an electronics detection dog, have been deployed today in the search for Charles. To give these dogs the best possible chance of finding Charles, we are asking all people and dogs to stay off of Blood Mountain until further notice.

Keeping the area clear of other scents is essential to the success of these highly trained search dogs.

Please help us spread this message. If you know hikers, dog walkers, or anyone planning to visit Blood Mountain, please share this request with them.

As the search for Charles enters its sixth day, teams continue comprehensive operations:

Today’s Operations:

• + Ground teams retraced previously searched areas while also covering new terrain

• + Drone operations continued throughout the day

• + Daily mobile alerts (similar to Amber Alerts) continue being distributed to increase public awareness

Search teams have worked tirelessly through some of the toughest terrain in Georgia, covering extensive ground in challenging conditions.

Tomorrow’s Plan:

Primary K-9 teams will implement a focused strategic approach based on all intelligence gathered throughout the search effort.

Please note: We will receive a briefing tomorrow evening. Please continue checking the firm’s website for further updates. For media inquiries, please contact Julia Hosch at Julia.Hosch@gmail.com.

We remain grateful for the heroic efforts, compassion, professionalism and continued dedication of all search and rescue personnel and the tremendous support from the community, our friends, families, and countless others who have offered their support.

Item descriptionToday’s Search Efforts:

• 95 search and rescue professionals are actively working in the field

• K-9 units continue tracking operations

• Drone operations are being deployed

Critical Information About Charles’s Route: Throughout his life, Charles has hiked the Byron Herbert Reece Trail to the top of Blood Mountain on the Appalachian Trail (AT)—a route he knows well. We have confirmed that he was descending from the top of Blood Mountain when he was last seen.

Charles is a creature of habit. We believe that he intended to hike down Blood Mountain but lost his way. This information is helping search teams focus their efforts along the most likely path Charles would have taken on his return journey.

We will bring him home.

Please continue liking and reposting the following post on LinkedIn on all social media platforms. Continued attention will help us find Charles:  https://bit.ly/4oiOpdL

Julia Hosch will remain available for media inquiries. Please contact julia.hosch@gmail.com.

Visual Sighting on Tuesday Afternoon: A credible source reported spotting Charles and having a conversation with him descending from the top of Blood Mountain on Tuesday, November 11th, at 1:30 PM.

Search efforts have significantly expanded and now include more than 50 search and rescue professionals, multiple K-9 teams, helicopters, a drone team, and expanded search areas. Efforts continue around the clock.

There have been positive canine indications of a place on the trail where Charles likely went, which gives the search team some confirmation that he was the trail, and his family and friends some new hope for the search tonight and tomorrow.