Jamie Apody is leaving 6abc

Jamie Apody has been missing from Action News viewers’ screens since October. On Friday, 6abc announced that she is officially leaving the news station.

“I am thankful to so many sports fans in the Delaware and Lehigh Valleys who have welcomed me into their homes every evening for the past 18 years,” Apody said in a statement provided by Action News. “I am so grateful for the tremendous outpouring of love, support, and concern shown to me over the past five months while I made a decision about my future.”

Apody — who was hired in 2006 by then-sports director Gary Papa, a popular figure with the station — gained the public’s embrace to the point that her absence sparked all sorts of speculation and a change.org petition asking that the station “reinstate” her.

The decision to leave was her choice, according to a statement from Thomas Davis, vice president of news at 6abc, who described her as “an inspiration to so many throughout the Delaware Valley.”

”I am thrilled to see her shift into new opportunities and continue to impact Philadelphia,” Davis said without providing specifics.

During her almost two decades at the network, Apody covered the Phillies’ 2008 World Series victory, the Eagles’ 2017 Super Bowl win, the Flyers’ 2009 season appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals, and the 2016 and 2018 Villanova Wildcat NCAA tournament championships, among other sports highlights.

In keeping with station tradition that its air talent is “family,” Apody’s 2010 engagement to Paul Coleman and the births of sons Tanner, now 11, and Chase, 10, also put the Los Angeles native in the news cycle.

As she looks forward to the next chapter in her career, Apody reassures viewers that “all is well with me and my family. ... I look forward to working on new ways to engage with my audience on topics that energize and celebrate our teams.”

Staff writer Mike Klein contributed to this article.