Third time is a charm! Well, not really, but whatever.

Echoes in the Night: The Search for Jacob Wetterling

A film by Chris Newberry

We have some big news to share! After nearly 11 years, Chris Newberry’s documentary film—Echoes in the Night: The Search for Jacob Wetterling—will premiere at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF) on Saturday, April 18 and Sunday, April 19.

Echoes in the Night has been a true passion project for Chris, and throughout the years that we worked with him, we all came to appreciate his talent, his heart, and his dogged persistence in getting this project across the finish line.

Chris began working on the “Jacob Wetterling Documentary” (his working title) in 2015, just before the shocking arrest of Danny Heinrich. A year later, Heinrich would confess to Jacob’s 1989 kidnapping and lead authorities to his remains. Just like Dear Jacob—Patty’s 2023 memoir—the project took on a whole new breadth and scope after Jacob was found.

Here’s the official description on the MSPIFF website:

In October of 1989, eleven-year-old Jacob Wetterling was abducted on a quiet road in St. Joseph, Minnesota. The crime sent shockwaves across the country and the story became more tragic as the Wetterlings achingly searched for answers and kept the light on for Jacob for 26 years. Incredibly, that’s where Director Chris Newberry’s film begins, just as the perpetrator is finally caught and the entire investigation into Jacob’s disappearance is re-examined. Echoes in the Night focuses on the family’s ceaseless search for answers, the work they’ve done in Jacob’s memoryto change the way missing children cases are investigated and resolved.

Echoes in the Night will have two showings at The Main Theatre in Minneapolis, followed by Q&A with Chris Newberry, Patty and Jerry Wetterling, and other key people shown in the film.

Tickets are $17/each (plus a $2 fee) and are ON SALE NOW on the film’s breakout page on the MSPIFF website. Click showtimes for tickets.

If you’re interested in seeing other films throughout the 12-day run, you can also purchase a 6-pack or a full access pass.

Visit this link to view the trailer and purchase individual tickets:

https://mspfilm.org/show/echoes-in-the-night-the-search-for-jacob-wetterling/

“Hog Heaven” - Can you help us solve a mystery?

by Patty Wetterling

Throughout the very long and grueling process of editing my memoir (Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope), there was—understandably—a lot of material that got cut.

One of those stories I still hold near and dear to my heart. I titled it “Hog Heaven” when I originally wrote it, and it’s about the time my car broke down on a rural road while I was on my way to a speaking event in southeastern Minnesota. Through the sheer kindness of others and the deep humanity of a complete stranger, I found myself staying overnight on a pig farm while my car was getting fixed.

I’m copying the chapter below in its entirety. I hope you enjoy it, but I also hope you can help me solve a mystery. Who was this amazing woman who took care of me that night? I would SO love to see her again and I’m hoping that by sharing this story, someone will recognize something that will trigger a memory and help connect the two of us once again.

Like I always say, “There are more good people in the world than bad,” and this is a prime example of that. Enjoy!

Hog Heaven

By Patty Wetterling (circa 1994-1995?)

Jacob’s abduction had changed so much about my life, my work, and the person I’d become. But, at my core, I was still a teacher and I always felt renewed whenever I spoke to children. Not only did they represent hope, but in sharing Jacob’s story, they gave me back a piece of myself I didn’t even know I’d lost. They taught me how to recharge, so whenever when I got discouraged, depressed or down in spirit, my remedy was to go talk to children. They were my life. Whether I was teaching them junior high math or staying at home to raise and nurture my own four kids, it was always children who motivated me to care, to build, to learn and to grow. I loved how their brains sorted things out, how they challenged conventional ideas, and how their eyes sparkled whenever they talked about something they really loved.

Much of this process of “finding myself” happened during my many road trips across the state for community speaking events.

The longer road trips were often liberating. I usually cooked meals for the family to heat up so once on the road, I didn’t have my kids to worry about or Jerry. I could just get lost in my own thoughts. I’d often shake my head at the craziness of this new life, reprocess current leads or efforts to find Jacob or just play music really load and unwind until I got closer. Then I would focus my thoughts on what I was going to say to whatever group I would be addressing. One day, after driving for several hours, my car suddenly died while I was traveling along Minnesota Highway 16 (?) near Rushford. I hadn’t thought to check the oil in our Suburban before heading down to the farthest southeastern corner of the state, and now I was afraid I’d seriously damaged the engine.

I was scheduled to speak at a conference in nearby Houston (?), and certainly hadn’t allowed any extra time for car trouble. Not knowing what to do, I dialed 911 on the car phone that plugged into the cigarette lighter and had a huge magnetic antenna that I had to stick onto the roof of the car. When the operator asked me for my location, I realized I had no idea where I was. As I was trying to figure it out, a police car pulled up behind me.

“Man, you guys are fast!” I said to the operator with clear relief in my voice. “Thank you!”

After explaining my predicament to the officer, he offered to give me a ride to the conference, which was about 20 miles away. He knew about the Domestic Violence Victim Services Conference and we chatted comfortably as he drove. I have no idea why I was never afraid of what was happening. It was just another “thing” in a growing list of things I would have to figure out. After arriving at the modest looking conference center on time and no worse for wear, I gratefully exited the squad car right at the front door of the conference building.

“I cannot thank you enough!” I said to the officer.

“No problem,” he replied. “Good luck with your presentation.” Before driving off, he also gave me the name of a towing company and auto repair shop in nearby Rushford. (?)

I met my contact person and had a few moments to settle in and exhale before starting my presentation. It went well, and afterward I stuck around to listen to a presentation about a program titled “Healing through Storytelling” that was specifically for kids.

Sharing stories of abuse in smaller communities is especially hard because “everyone knows everyone.” Sometimes there is denial or even anger toward the children for saying such horrible things about the person they say is causing them sexual harm. But programs like this are SO needed and the kids affected need a lot of support to heal.

One by one, I watched as these kids walked bravely to the front of the room and shared their story. I was moved to tears listening to all that they had gone through and, finally, I couldn’t bear it anymore. With tears streaming down my face, I slipped out the back and sobbed.

One of the volunteers saw me exit and followed me out.

“Are you OK?” she asked gently.

“No. I’m really not.”

I was full out crying now.

“It breaks my heart to hear these kids tell their stories. All I can think about is Jacob and wonder what’s happening to him. If he’s still alive, is he going through the same hell that these kids did? It is all so sad that we even need conferences like this.”

She reached for my hand and listened graciously as I rambled on.

“I’m sorry. It’s just too hard. I can’t listen to any more, but I can’t leave because I don’t have a car. It broke down on my way here and it’s getting towed to Rushford to get fixed. I don’t have a place to stay and I… I just really miss Jacob.”

I’d never felt so lost and alone in my entire life. The impact of my family’s reality came crashing in on me and I’d finally crumbled.

“You could stay with me,” she offered.

I tried to get ahold of myself and blinked back tears as she continued.

“My husband and I live on a farm not too far from here. I can drive you back to Rushford tomorrow. It’s not a problem.”

My brain quickly scanned my situation. She was a volunteer at a shelter. She worked with traumatized women. She surely appeared to be compassionate and it felt safe. What better option was there in the middle of nowhere? I felt that I needed to be able to trust in the goodness of people.

“Are you sure?” I asked her.

“I’ll go grab my stuff.”

The woman was small, not much taller than I was, and was naturally pretty with her brown hair neatly braided halfway down her back. She reminded me of my friend Nancy who was into gardening and the “earthiest” person I knew. She was soft spoken and kind and at that point in time, I just wanted to get away from the conference and the stories.

We jumped into her pickup truck and she kept the conversation light as we travelled along the rolling countryside. As we pulled into her long gravel driveway, I was taken aback by the smell. It was so strong, I could barely breathe. She’d failed to mention (and I’d failed to ask) what kind of farming they did, but suddenly it was abundantly clear. It was a pig farm.

I was somewhat familiar with the smell having taken so many road trips throughout rural Minnesota, but this was a lot. I wasn’t sure I could get used to it enough to breathe comfortably, let alone sleep. What had I gotten myself into?

I followed the woman through the back door of a “typical looking” white farmhouse. It opened to a warm and cozy kitchen, lit by the warm glow of the afternoon sun.

“Sorry for the mess,” she said, embarrassed. “I didn’t get a chance to clean up before I left.”

Her kitchen counter was covered with colorful jam-filled jars that reminded me of a farmer’s market or gift shop. It didn’t look like a mess to me, it just looked magical, and the whole kitchen smelled heavenly in contrast to the outside air.

She shared that she’d previously moved away from the area but had come back to help care for her aging parents. She’d met her husband after reconnecting at a class reunion and learned that he was also caring for his aging parents. He’d taken over the family farm and she was an artist.

Her studio was on the second floor, where her beautiful oil canvasses of flowers, country scenes, and vegetable-and-fruit still lifes decorated the room. I was so impressed by her work and the peaceful studio she’d created.

“My” room was next to the studio. It was nicely decorated with a homemade quilt on the bed and fluffy white curtains that floated into the room through the open window. The contrast between this idyllic setting and the words of those children at the sexual violence conference couldn’t have been farther apart. I was so grateful to be away from it all.

I dropped my small overnight bag in the room and went back down to have a sandwich for dinner. Her husband was shy and quiet, but willing to answer my endless questions about farming since I knew nothing. The love between the two of them was palpable, and the whole scene was a beautiful blend between the earth, the arts, the simplicity of lifestyle, and the beauty and magnificence of the land.

Later, I made my way back upstairs, no longer smelling the pigs, but feeling renewed and cared for by two such amazing people.

In the morning, I made my way back downstairs and noticed my hostess getting ready to head outside.

“Do you need any help ‘slopping the pigs?” I asked her.

“Sure!” she laughed. She gave me a pair of rubber boots to wear and we made our way into the barn. I’d grown accustomed to the smell by now and loved watching all the cute pigs dive into their troughs, so grateful for their morning feed. I could seriously see myself learning to love this lifestyle.

Afterward, my angel hostess fed me eggs, coffee and toast with her homemade jam for breakfast, then we jumped back into her pick-up truck and drove the 25 miles to where my car had been towed. The damage I caused would take a few days to repair, so I’d called home the night before and arranged for a friend to drive down and pick me up.

I never saw this woman again and, sadly, I don’t remember the date I was there (nor can I even remember her name), but I’d like her to know that her kindness and generosity was truly life-changing for me. Not only had she rescued me when I was stranded, offered me a place to stay, opened her life and home to me, and shared the joys of her creative and simple lifestyle, she renewed my faith in people and I will be forever indebted to her for that.

Truly, there are more good people in the world than bad.

Do any of the details from this story sound familiar to you? If so, leave a comment and help us solve this mystery!

Leave a comment

Upcoming Author Events

Additional events, links and details will be added as they become available. Dates and times subject to change. Please check back for final confirmation.

If you’re interested in having Patty and Joy do a book signing and/or speak at your upcoming event, please contact Jim Cihlar at Minnesota Historical Society Press.

• 5/11/2026, 1:00 PM, Lake Agassiz Regional Library, Breckenridge, MN

• 5/11/2026, 6:00 PM, Lake Agassiz Regional Library, Moorhead, MN

• 5/12/2026, 3:30 PM, Lake Agassiz Regional Library, Mahnomen, MN

• 5/12/2026, 7:00 PM, Lake Agassiz Regional Library, Crookston, MN

• 5/13/2026, 2:00 PM, Lake Agassiz Regional Library, Bagley, MN

• 5/13/2026, 6:00 PM, Lake Agassiz Regional Library, Detroit Lakes, MN

• 6/27/2026, 1:00 PM, Winona Public Library

Book Clubs

We are visiting book clubs and discussing Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on Zoom! In return, we ask that your book club make a donation of any amount to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. Message us for details. We look forward to sharing Dear Jacob with you!

Follow Joy at JoyTheCurious.com

If you’re not already following Joy’s Substack, you can find her at JoyTheCurious.com.

Now in Paperback

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope

Order from one of these online retailers or wherever you like to buy books!

MINNESOTA HISTORICAL SOCIETY PRESS

BOOKSHOP.ORG

BARNES & NOBLE

AMAZON

TARGET

Excerpt from the new Afterword

By Joy Baker

Sometimes a person comes into your life for reasons you can’t possibly un-derstand. When Patty and I first started working on this book, Jacob was still missing. We thought we were working on a legacy piece that would bring attention to his case, highlight Patty’s advocacy work, and serve as a spark of hope for other families of missing children. We were wrong. It became so much more.

As we worked on those early pages together, we couldn’t possibly have known what was in store for us or what our friendship would have to endure. To see it through would mean going there together—through the darkness, the sadness, and the unfathomable grief. Could we even do it? Would people be receptive to it? Would our friendship survive it?

It has been a remarkable journey.

At that charity gala in 2013 when Patty and I first met, I was forty-six; she was sixty-five. I had just given up my dream of starting a new writing career and gone back to working full-time at what I knew—marketing. Patty was a well-known keynote speaker, a child safety advocate, a national figure in Washington, DC, and probably the most famous Minnesotan I’d ever met. She just oozed drive and purpose. Like everyone else at the gala, I was blown away by her powerful message of hope and her belief in the overall goodness of humankind.

So I was more than a little nervous about approaching Patty that evening and introducing myself as the blogger who had been writing about her missing son for the past two months. Did she know who I was? Had she been following my blog? Was I making a difference? I was desperately trying to figure out my own purpose in life and hoped maybe this was it. By writing about Jacob’s case and asking people to “think Jacob” with me, maybe I could somehow create change.

It didn’t go as expected. Patty saw my writing less as “making a difference” and more “like stalking or something.”

Audiobook

People often ask us if there’s an audiobook version of Dear Jacob and the answer is, yes! It was published by Dreamscape Media at the same time the hard cover was released last year. It’s narrated by Rebecca Stern who does an amazing job voicing this emotional story.

The audiobook has also been updated with the new cover art and afterword —which is read by Joy in her own voice.

You can find the audio version of Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on all the major audio platforms, including Audible, Audiobooks.com, the Apple Books app, Hoopla, Libby, Libro.fm, Google Play Books, and Scribd. If you’re interested in listening to a sample of Dear Jacob, click the following link.

https://www.audiobooks.com/book/stream/717092

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

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Patty’s article is especially poignant as we face these challenging times. In her very “Patty way” she reminds us to focus on the stars that shine through the darkness. Be thankful. And to never underestimate the power of hope.

Hugs,
Joy

Our second attempt at video

Quick correction for our new Irish friends: Patty’s people are from County Mayo in northwest Ireland, not County Cork.

Living a “Thank You Life”

By Patty Wetterling

Thank you.

Two words that mean the world.

In today’s world, we take so much for granted. Our comforts—housing, food on the table, warmth, having a bed, friends and family.

Then we witness the unimaginable, horrible acts of violence committed by human beings.

June 14:

• The assassination of Minnesota Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark.

• Serious gunshot wounds to State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.

August 27:

• The mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis. Two children dead, 21 people injured. The 23-year-old shooter dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

September 10:

• The assassination of political activist Charlie Kirk in Utah.

• The mass shooting at Evergreen High School in Colorado. Two students injured. The 16-year-old shooter dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

According to the most recent statistic I found, there were 309 mass shootings in the United States with 302 deaths and 1,354 injuries. That was as of August 31st.

My mind can’t wrap itself around all the pain of these high-profile cases, and yet I know there are even more that don’t get the national attention.

Our family knows and lived the experience of having our lives fine and “normal” one day, and then forever changed by an act of violence. We know the difficulties of trying to pick yourself up again, and trying to build happiness and meaning after such senseless killings.

Yet through the darkness, we also witnessed the amazing stars that came shining through—the searchers, the doctors, the counselors, the food that was provided, the survivors. We were often carried by the kindness of so many people who reached out—some that we knew, and many others that we didn’t. It truly speaks to the good side of the human spirit.

We need that back.

My brain always seeks to back things up and see if there is a way to get ahead of the violence problems. We need to prevent violence from happening in the first place!

What do we need to do to raise children to be healthy, happy, productive grownups and prevent “growing” them into people who go out and commit these crimes?

It’s a good question to ask in trying to reduce violence.

Three of my favorite resources are:

1. The Search Institute (searchinstitute.org) has many research-based tools, including their Developmental Assets Profile, that measures the strengths, supports, and social emotional factors that influence the development of young people. It helps us learn what young people need to thrive.

2. Minnesota Children’s Mental Health Association (macmh.org) has many fact sheets, resources and tools to support kids impacted by violence.

3. Jacob Wetterling Resource Center, a program of Zero Abuse Project (zeroabuseproject.org), works to prevent crimes against children.

These organizations have a history of positively impacting children, and continue to help me often when I don’t have the words to deal with what I am seeing.

My suggestion for today is to say a few thank yous.

Thank you to all of the police, firemen, and first responders.

Thank you to all the nurses, doctors, and cleaning people at the hospital.

Thank you to all of the dedicated staff at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) who are having to shift their budgets and adapt to new rules and timelines due to the new leadership in Washington. The work you do helps so many people!

Thank you to the parking attendant who has a smile and nice greeting every time I leave the hospital parking ramp after visiting my sister.

Thank you to my sister for hanging in there through so much pain and so many setbacks.

Thank you to my brother for his hilarious retelling of our dad’s silly jokes.

Thank you to my kids for their caring checkup calls to me and my sisters.

Thank you to my husband for picking up a rotisserie chicken last night, even though I had stated I would try and start some dinner when I got home.

Thank you to my dog Penny Lane for always being ready for a hug.

I believe that a really good counter to negativity in the world is to show gratitude. Say thank you for all that’s going right. Thank you for people being kind. Thank you for caring for one another. Thank you for support during the hard times.

Living a “Thank You Life” just feels better. And for me, it brings back hope.

With hope,
Patty

Upcoming Author Events

Additional events, links and details will be added as they become available. Dates and times subject to change. Please check back for final confirmation.

• 9/15/2025 - Patty, “Community Healing and Moving Forward,” Benson High School Performing Arts Center, Benson, MN - 6:00 PM

• 9/25-9/27/2025 - Patty and Joy, South Dakota Festival of Books, Spearfish, SD – 10:15 AM (Saturday)

• 10/10/2025 - Patty and Joy, Day at Home Mental Health Advocacy Event, Broadway Ballroom, Alexandria, MN – 9:00 AM

• 10/17/2025 - Patty, Central Minnesota Aging with Attitude Expo, Sauk Centre High School, Sauk Centre MN – 9:00 AM

• 12/4/2025 - Patty and Joy, Ashby MN – TBD

Book Clubs

We are visiting book clubs and discussing Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on Zoom! In return, we ask that your book club make a donation of any amount to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. Message us for details. We look forward to sharing Dear Jacob with you!

Follow Joy at JoyTheCurious.com

If you’re not already following Joy’s Substack, you can find her at JoyTheCurious.com. Check out her latest story called “Sentenced to College: The Angel Hernandez Story.”

Now in Paperback, Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope

Order from one of these online retailers or wherever you like to buy books!

MINNESOTA HISTORICAL SOCIETY PRESS

BOOKSHOP.ORG

BARNES & NOBLE

AMAZON

TARGET

Excerpt from the new Afterword

By Joy Baker

Sometimes a person comes into your life for reasons you can’t possibly un-derstand. When Patty and I first started working on this book, Jacob was still missing. We thought we were working on a legacy piece that would bring attention to his case, highlight Patty’s advocacy work, and serve as a spark of hope for other families of missing children. We were wrong. It became so much more.

As we worked on those early pages together, we couldn’t possibly have known what was in store for us or what our friendship would have to endure. To see it through would mean going there together—through the darkness, the sadness, and the unfathomable grief. Could we even do it? Would people be receptive to it? Would our friendship survive it?

It has been a remarkable journey.

At that charity gala in 2013 when Patty and I first met, I was forty-six; she was sixty-five. I had just given up my dream of starting a new writing career and gone back to working full-time at what I knew—marketing. Patty was a well-known keynote speaker, a child safety advocate, a national figure in Washington, DC, and probably the most famous Minnesotan I’d ever met. She just oozed drive and purpose. Like everyone else at the gala, I was blown away by her powerful message of hope and her belief in the overall goodness of humankind.

So I was more than a little nervous about approaching Patty that evening and introducing myself as the blogger who had been writing about her missing son for the past two months. Did she know who I was? Had she been following my blog? Was I making a difference? I was desperately trying to figure out my own purpose in life and hoped maybe this was it. By writing about Jacob’s case and asking people to “think Jacob” with me, maybe I could somehow create change.

It didn’t go as expected. Patty saw my writing less as “making a difference” and more “like stalking or something.”

Audiobook

People often ask us if there’s an audiobook version of Dear Jacob and the answer is, yes! It was published by Dreamscape Media at the same time the hard cover was released last year. It’s narrated by Rebecca Stern who does an amazing job voicing this emotional story.

The audiobook has also been updated with the new cover art and afterword —which is read by Joy in her own voice.

You can find the audio version of Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on all the major audio platforms, including Audible, Audiobooks.com, the Apple Books app, Hoopla, Libby, Libro.fm, Google Play Books, and Scribd. If you’re interested in listening to a sample of Dear Jacob, click the following link.

https://www.audiobooks.com/book/stream/717092

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

Leave a comment

Share

But here we are, back at it! We recently did our first online bookclub discussion via Zoom and have some screenshots from that to share. Thanks to the ladies from the University of Wisconsin’s Delta Zeta Sorority Alumnae Chapter Virtual Book Club. We really enjoyed meeting with all of you and are grateful for your generous donation to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center.

Patty and I are trying something a little different with this newsletter… a foray into video. Off and on, we’ve talked about trying to use the new(ish) video capabilities on Substack, so this is that. Our first attempt.

We’re also including an article from Patty that talks about the healing power of connecting and sharing your story with others.

Hope you enjoy!

—Joy

Our first attempt at podcasting… or whatever

Connections

By Patty Wetterling

I will never forget the first time I met another parent of a missing child.

“Tell me about Morgan, or Kevin or Suzie,” I would ask. “What happened? Do you have other children? How are they doing? How are you?”

Often, one of us would nod and offer a hug as the other would share their story.

Shared experiences can be so strengthening and energizing. We would share advice and compare notes. What else can I do? Do I really need to pay attention to that? Here’s what helped me the most.

At our Dear Jacob book events, I am always reminded of the strength and power of shared stories. People want to connect, need to connect.

Our world has changed so much since my childhood. We had one telephone for the seven of us, one car and one TV. On Sundays, my dad would pile us all into the car and we’d go visiting aunts and uncles, cousins and friends. They’d offer cookies and milk, coffee and conversation. It was fun and we’d stay connected by these visits. Technology has pretty much changed all of that. Now we Facetime, Facebook, Snapchat, Zoom, and a million other forms of connections. I am so grateful to have these tools, yet I am still one who truly loves getting together with people face to face—in person—sharing hugs and feeling their smiles or tears.

That connectedness is what Joy and I experience at all our book events. People will share where they were when they first heard about Jacob, how old they were, how it changed their growing up years, and how their parents parented versus how they parent today. Now that they’re parents themselves, they share how they are trying to navigate this whole scary new world that their kids are experiencing. They are seeking support and often tools for talking to kids without scaring them, and how to deal with their own fears of something bad happening.

They also share their own stories. Proud stories of their children and stories of their own loss. They talk about their sadness over losing a child to cancer, accidents, messy divorces, gun violence, or suicide.

I know the power of release that comes from sharing something so personal. Sometimes people are afraid to mention the name of your lost loved one, or afraid to ask a question because they don’t want to cause you further pain. But we carry them so strongly throughout our lives. I know my survival of this very public crime has allowed others to look in the mirror and decide to get up, to commit to making changes that are needed, and to make sure the world never forgets.

This sharing of hearts is always a sacred part of our speaking events. Joy is such a strong friend in this sharing. Jacob wasn’t her own son but somehow, he came into her life as strongly as if he was. She has supported many friends through her kindness and sensitivity, and shows the world how closely connected we all are. She demonstrates how powerful friendships are when we’re going through tough times.

I know the strength it takes to move forward, but I could never have done it without friends and family. If only everyone could find their support systems—their peeps who lift them up. We need to find our way out of the dark. It only takes a single match to light a candle, a single spark to ignite the hope that can guide our way to the light. By uniting hearts through all the pain we’ve encountered and being that spark for one another, we can move to a more caring world. We can gently raise our children to care for one another and help those who are hurting to find a better place.

Today’s world is tough. We hear “news” everywhere we go. We suffer from FOMO if there is no Internet or cell phone coverage, and most of the news is not happy. It’s sad.

We need each other. We need to hear, hug, feel, touch, smell loved ones.

I love these connections. Sad stories, happy stories, strange life experiences, hopeful promises… they are all part of what awakens my spirit. Thank you to all who have shared. Your stories open my heart and make me so grateful to all those who have been there for me and my family.

Jacob’s spirit touched many lives and taught us all that we can help others just by being there for them. Let’s try to revive the spirit of those old-fashioned Sunday visits—whether it’s online or in person—because we can’t ever replace the power of human interactions.

We need each other. Reach out.

Book Clubs

We are visiting book clubs and discussing Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on Zoom! In return, we ask that your book club make a donation of any amount to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. Message us for details. We look forward to sharing Dear Jacob with you!

Follow Joy at JoyTheCurious.com

If you’re not already following Joy’s Substack, you can find her at JoyTheCurious.com. Check out her latest story called “Sentenced to College: The Angel Hernandez Story.”

Now in Paperback, Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope

Order from one of these online retailers or wherever you like to buy books!

MINNESOTA HISTORICAL SOCIETY PRESS

BOOKSHOP.ORG

BARNES & NOBLE

AMAZON

TARGET

Excerpt from the new Afterword

By Joy Baker

Sometimes a person comes into your life for reasons you can’t possibly un-derstand. When Patty and I first started working on this book, Jacob was still missing. We thought we were working on a legacy piece that would bring attention to his case, highlight Patty’s advocacy work, and serve as a spark of hope for other families of missing children. We were wrong. It became so much more.

As we worked on those early pages together, we couldn’t possibly have known what was in store for us or what our friendship would have to endure. To see it through would mean going there together—through the darkness, the sadness, and the unfathomable grief. Could we even do it? Would people be receptive to it? Would our friendship survive it?

It has been a remarkable journey.

At that charity gala in 2013 when Patty and I first met, I was forty-six; she was sixty-five. I had just given up my dream of starting a new writing career and gone back to working full-time at what I knew—marketing. Patty was a well-known keynote speaker, a child safety advocate, a national figure in Washington, DC, and probably the most famous Minnesotan I’d ever met. She just oozed drive and purpose. Like everyone else at the gala, I was blown away by her powerful message of hope and her belief in the overall goodness of humankind.

So I was more than a little nervous about approaching Patty that evening and introducing myself as the blogger who had been writing about her missing son for the past two months. Did she know who I was? Had she been following my blog? Was I making a difference? I was desperately trying to figure out my own purpose in life and hoped maybe this was it. By writing about Jacob’s case and asking people to “think Jacob” with me, maybe I could somehow create change.

It didn’t go as expected. Patty saw my writing less as “making a difference” and more “like stalking or something.”

Audiobook

People often ask us if there’s an audiobook version of Dear Jacob and the answer is, yes! It was published by Dreamscape Media at the same time the hard cover was released last year. It’s narrated by Rebecca Stern who does an amazing job voicing this emotional story.

The audiobook has also been updated with the new cover art and afterword —which is read by Joy in her own voice.

You can find the audio version of Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on all the major audio platforms, including Audible, Audiobooks.com, the Apple Books app, Hoopla, Libby, Libro.fm, Google Play Books, and Scribd. If you’re interested in listening to a sample of Dear Jacob, click the following link.

https://www.audiobooks.com/book/stream/717092

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

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Now, Minnesota Historical Society Press is reaching out to an even larger audience with a new paperback version of the book. In addition to the redesigned cover, there’s also a new afterword written by me. It gives a raw, behind-the-scenes glimpse of what it took to write this book together, and the amazing friendship we developed along the way.

Here’s the official press release from our publisher, Minnesota Historical Society Press, followed by an excerpt from the new afterword.

Coming Soon in Paperback, Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope

Bestselling book by Patty Wetterling with Joy Baker is now available for preorder as paperback

ST. PAUL (Nov. 14, 2024)—Tens of thousands of readers embraced Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, first published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press in hardcover in 2023. On Jan. 14, the paperback edition, featuring a new afterword and cover, spreads its powerful message even further. The paperback is now available for preorder.

A Parent’s Worst Nightmare, 27 Years Waiting for an Answer

In 1989, eleven-year-old Jacob Wetterling was kidnapped not far from his home in St. Joseph, Minnesota. The community quickly rallied around the family, and Patty Wetterling, Jacob’s mother, stepped into the spotlight. 

Punctuated by Wetterling’s letters to her missing son, Dear Jacob brings readers into the  heartbreak of a parent’s worst nightmare. It also describes the development of an unexpected friendship with an inquisitive blogger, Joy Baker, whose deft research uncovered clues that ultimately led to the conclusion of the twenty-seven-year-long missing persons case.

As the criminal investigation into Jacob’s disappearance stretched from weeks to months to years, Wetterling devoted herself to advocating for children. She successfully lobbied for the passage of the 1994 Jacob Wetterling Act, which established sex offender registries. She served on the board of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children for over twenty years and became a nationally respected authority on child protection. 

Co-written with Baker, this memoir chronicles both a personal and a collective story of contemporary history, one that permanently changed public policy and the way we parent our children. It also shows that communities can heal after tragedy, and that families can still experience love, joy, happiness, and hope.

Wetterling is a national advocate, visionary, and educator on the prevention of child abduction and exploitation. Baker works as an independent marketing consultant, writer, and blogger.

Available January 14, 2025
Memoir / True Crime, 354 pages, 6 x 9, 24 b&w images, new afterword 
Paperback, $22.95, ISBN: 978-1-68134-314-3
e-Book, $12.99, ISBN: 978-1-68134-318-1

Excerpt from the new Afterword

By Joy Baker

Sometimes a person comes into your life for reasons you can’t possibly un-derstand. When Patty and I first started working on this book, Jacob was still missing. We thought we were working on a legacy piece that would bring attention to his case, highlight Patty’s advocacy work, and serve as a spark of hope for other families of missing children. We were wrong. It became so much more.

As we worked on those early pages together, we couldn’t possibly have known what was in store for us or what our friendship would have to endure. To see it through would mean going there together—through the darkness, the sadness, and the unfathomable grief. Could we even do it? Would people be receptive to it? Would our friendship survive it?

It has been a remarkable journey.

At that charity gala in 2013 when Patty and I first met, I was forty-six; she was sixty-five. I had just given up my dream of starting a new writing career and gone back to working full-time at what I knew—marketing. Patty was a well-known keynote speaker, a child safety advocate, a national figure in Washington, DC, and probably the most famous Minnesotan I’d ever met. She just oozed drive and purpose. Like everyone else at the gala, I was blown away by her powerful message of hope and her belief in the overall goodness of humankind.

So I was more than a little nervous about approaching Patty that evening and introducing myself as the blogger who had been writing about her missing son for the past two months. Did she know who I was? Had she been following my blog? Was I making a difference? I was desperately trying to figure out my own purpose in life and hoped maybe this was it. By writing about Jacob’s case and asking people to “think Jacob” with me, maybe I could somehow create change.

It didn’t go as expected. Patty saw my writing less as “making a difference” and more “like stalking or something.”

Pre-order the new paperback version of Dear Jacob now, available on January 14, 2025!

Thanksgiving gratitude

By Patty Wetterling

I love Thanksgiving. I always have. 

For me, Thanksgiving is a time to really reflect on the things that one is grateful for: Simple things we often take for granted. Friends who have always been there. Food to fill our bellies. A warm house to shelter us and offer comfort. Relatives we love but don’t see every day.

When we were first married, Jerry and I didn’t have the funds to make it home from Arlington, Virginia for the big family gathering on Thanksgiving.  Jerry was working for the National Jogging Association and one of their original members invited us to his apartment for dinner. This man was 91 years old and still jogged every day — up and down the hallway in his building — then went off to work at his flower shop. Lucky for us, he also loved to cook! I really didn’t know what to expect, but I packed up a loaf of homemade pumpkin bread, and we headed over there. 

The housekeeper helped lift the turkey in and out of the oven, but other than that, this amazing and generous 91-year-old man put together a fabulous traditional Thanksgiving dinner for us that day, enriched by so many entertaining stories he shared with us about his very full life. We were so grateful.

There would be a few more Thanksgivings when Jerry and I weren’t able to be together with family, so — living by example — we always made a point of inviting other stranded friends to fill our table with good food, laughter, and friendship.

Our more typical tradition involves a large family gathering.  The host family supplies the turkey, dressing and mashed potatoes, but almost everything else is brought by visiting family members: green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, garden salad, homemade butterhorn rolls, cranberry salad, pie and ice cream are standard offerings. 

It truly is a feast of love. Honoring our traditions, we pray for those who don’t have a Thanksgiving dinner on their tables, we acknowledge relatives who couldn’t attend, we appreciate those who made the trip to get there, we Facetime those who were unable to join us in person, and, right before we eat, we all hold hands and sing “Johnny Appleseed.”

Oh the Lord is good to me
And so I thank the Lord
For giving me the things I need
The sun, the rain and the apple seed,
The Lord is good to me.

Amen. Amen. Amen. Dig In!

One more tradition that’s always surprise to the spouses who have married into our goofy family is our annual “after dinner walk.”  While many of them would rather curl up on the couch for a nap, instead we don our boots, jackets, hats, and scarves then head out for a good brisk walk to burn off some of those extra carbs and calories we just consumed.  “Come on!” we nudge and encourage. “It’s tradition!”

Thanksgiving always makes me cry a little bit, but in a good way. In spite of all the difficulties each of us has faced—grief, loss, struggles, unmet hopes and dreams—we still have been blessed with so much. Good food, good friends and family, good health and good fortune. There are many days when I take these things for granted, but not on Thanksgiving. Whatever is going on in our lives, there are always many things to be thankful for. Take the time. Name them. 

This Thanksgiving Day, let’s all honor thankfulness, remember not to take anything or anyone for granted, share what we can with others, and spread good cheer.

Thanksgiving also ushers in the holiday season of light. No matter what faith you hold in your heart, let us each light a candle to reflect and brighten the world with good wishes. It feels like the world really needs this right now.

Wishing you all the best!

Love, Patty

Audiobook

People often ask us if there’s an audiobook version of Dear Jacob and the answer is, yes! It was published by Dreamscape Media at the same time the hard cover was released last year. It’s narrated by Rebecca Stern who does an amazing job voicing this emotional story.

The audiobook is also being updated with the new cover art and afterword —which is read by Joy in her own voice.

You can find the audio version of Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on all the major audio platforms, including Audible, Audiobooks.com, Apple Books.com, Hoopla, Libby, Libro.fm, Google Play Books, and Everand. If you’re interested in listening to a sample of Dear Jacob, click the following link.

https://www.audiobooks.com/book/stream/717092

Book Clubs

We are visiting book clubs and discussing Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on Zoom! In return, we ask that your book club make a donation of any amount to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. Message us for details. We look forward to sharing Dear Jacob with you!

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

Follow Joy at JoyTheCurious.com

If you’re not already following Joy’s Substack, you can find her at JoyTheCurious.com. Check out her latest story called “Sentenced to College: The Angel Hernandez Story.”

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope was released on October 17th, 2023 by MNHS Press. You can purchase it at your favorite bookseller, or ask for it at your local library.

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

Leave a comment

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Thirty-five years ago on this day—October 22—our 11-year-old son Jacob was stolen from us and our lives changed forever. 

It’s so hard to describe what happens each year on October 22. Before Jacob was found, we always tried to use this day to talk to the media, re-engage law enforcement, and keep the hope alive by asking the public to keep searching for Jacob. Then, over Labor Day weekend in September 2016, the man who kidnapped Jacob accepted a plea deal and led law enforcement to Jacob’s remains. Finally we got our answers to what really happened on that horrible day in 1989.

And now, 35 years later, we are still asking ourselves… what do we do with this day?

It doesn’t help that everything feels oddly similar this year. The weather in Minnesota is beautiful and unseasonably warm with temperatures in the 70s. Families just celebrated a long weekend over the MEA school break. And, the Minnesota Vikings played the Detroit Lions this past Sunday, just like they did in 1989.

Still, we still find strength and comfort in remembering Jacob on October 22 and gathering with friends and family.  As our grandkids get older, our kids are faced with busy schedules and other life commitments, so it’s a bit of a toss-up as to who is able to stop by. But, Jerry and I prefer staying home and continuing to feel the support of all those who have carried us on this tough journey.

Last night, on the eve of Oct 22, we once again made Jacob’s favorite meal—a steak dinner with baked potatoes and Peanut Butter Swirl Bars for dessert. Our friends Donna and Kevin plan to stop on Tuesday with Corn and Cheddar Cheese Chowder, and we’ve also heard from a few other friends who have never missed an October 22. We will turn on our front porch light and play some Red Grammer music to sing along to and be warmed by the gift of so much love and support. Later, we’ll walk up to the abduction site and offer a few prayers of remembrance as we reminisce. 

I’ll also keep working on my annual “Dear Jacob” letter, as it helps me to put perspective on this strange life we’ve led. We will never let this day go by without sharing how wonderful Jacob was to have in our lives for those short 11 years.

Our family is truly grateful for the support, hugs, love and prayers that always lead us out of the darkness and back into our belief that there are way more good people in the world than bad. I definitely feel that it’s time for good people to come together again. 

Jacob, your strong spirit continues to guide us, and the entire world has benefited from knowing you and loving you.  You have changed so many lives and will remain in our hearts forever.

With all my love,
Mom

A blast from the past

At a recent speaking event for the Minnesota Society for Human Resource Management (MNSHRM), Joy and I had the opportunity to visit with several people who shared their own stories of where they were living, how old they were when Jacob was taken, and how his disappearance had made such a profound and lasting impact on their own lives.

One of the people we spoke to was a woman named Bonny Cruz who shared a photo with us that she’d saved on her cell phone.

It was from an article in the St. Cloud Times that ran on October 21, 1990, one day before the first anniversary of Jacob’s disappearance. She zoomed in to show that I had even signed the photo that appeared in the article.

Bonny went on to explain that she is now dating the little boy in the blue pants who was running behind Jerry. His name is Dave Windels and his dad, Wes, is in the black running outfit, slightly behind Jerry on his left.

It turns out that Dave Windels is now “Sergeant Windels,” a patrol sergeant with the Elk River Police Department. His grandfather was also a police officer in New York Mills.

It warms my heart when people continue to share their stories with me. Thank you, Bonny, for taking the time to share this photo, and to Dave for his 24 years of service as a law enforcement officer!

The marvels and miracles of DNA forensics

On September 24, Joy and I had the amazing opportunity to share Jacob’s story with an audience of nearly 1,000 as keynote speakers for the 35th International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI) in San Antonio, Texas.

ISHI (pronounced “ishy”) is where leaders in the emerging field of DNA forensics meet to learn cutting-edge insights, discover new products and services being introduced to the market, and network with like-minded individuals from around the world who are all dedicated to the advancement of DNA technology. These are the people who work every day to solve mysteries, reunite families, and assist law enforcement, especially where DNA is involved. These forensic scientists and researchers seldom get any acknowledgement when their work provides a big break in a case, so they really appreciate hearing real life stories like Jacob’s where forensic genealogy and/or DNA technology helped provide answers.

The theme of this year’s ISHI conference was “From Evidence to Narrative: The Convergence of True Crime Media and DNA Forensic.” Joy and I presented together, laying out Jacob’s case from the very beginning and through to the conclusion, where advancements in DNA technology ultimately helped to solve the case. It was an emotional presentation for me because, without those dedicated men and women in the audience who work hard every day to advance the field of DNA forensics, we may never have found our answers.

Ironically, just eight days after this intense conference, my friend Colleen Nick called from Arkansas to tell me that, the following morning, there was going to be an important press conference regarding her daughter Morgan’s case.  Six-year-old Morgan Nick went missing while attending a Little League baseball game with her mother on the evening of June 9, 1995. After going to catch fireflies with two of her friends on a nearby hill, Morgan never returned. She is still missing 29 years later.

Morgan’s story was recently featured in a documentary called “Still Missing Morgan” on Hulu. The limited series also covered Jacob’s case, as well as the deep, lifelong friendship that Colleen and I developed throughout our years as searching parents.

During the filming of the documentary, investigators tracked down a red pickup truck that was seen at the ballfield on the night Morgan went missing. The press conference confirmed that DNA from a blonde hair found in the truck belonged to Morgan. 

Unfortunately, the man who owned the red truck died in prison in 2000. So, while there is now convincing evidence that this suspect kidnapped Morgan, the family is still praying for more information as to her location.  Anyone with information should call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.

Thank you to all the scientists and law enforcement who have never given up on Morgan.  The challenges of having a long-term missing child are devastating.  Our hearts and prayers remain with Colleen, her children and her grandchildren.

Some photos from our recent book talks

Book Clubs

We are visiting book clubs and discussing Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on Zoom! In return, we ask that your book club make a donation of any amount to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. Message us for details. We look forward to sharing Dear Jacob with you!

Message Patty Wetterling and Joy Baker

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

Follow Joy at JoyTheCurious.com

If you’re not already following Joy’s Substack, you can find her at JoyTheCurious.com. Check out her latest story called “Sentenced to College: The Angel Hernandez Story.”

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope was released on October 17th, 2023 by MNHS Press. You can purchase it at your favorite bookseller, or ask for it at your local library.

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

Leave a comment

Share

My desire to learn more about my Irish roots arose when I seriously started writing Dear Jacob. Joy asked me to talk about growing up in St. Paul and to share more about my family. I spent a lot of time pondering the fact that I knew very little about my birth dad. The truth is, I was so young when he died, I barely remember him. I have one vivid memory of my dad holding my hand as we walked to church. This was during a time when he was nearly blind from diabetic complications and poor health. I was amazed that he could stop me from stepping out into the street when a car was coming. I didn’t see it, but he could hear it.

My birth dad died when I was in kindergarten. Life was different then. He was Catholic but my mom wasn’t, so there was a bit of a split in the family. My maternal grandmother (my mom’s mother) almost didn’t attend my parents’ wedding because of this. After my dad passed, we somewhat lost contact with that side of the family. My mom tried to keep us in touch over the years, but we really didn’t see them a lot. I’ve reconnected with some of my cousins recently and am sad about the lost years.

All of this built a strong desire to learn more about my ancestors. I knew I was part Irish and was named after my dad’s brother Patrick who drowned as a teenager. I was told this was the main reason my mom had all of us in swimming lessons as early as she could!

In 2021, when I sold my little house in St. Paul, our realtors asked me what I was going to do with the profit I had made. I told them, “I’m going to Ireland!”

Thanks to my husband, Jerry, and to Joy and Ross Baker, I finally did it.

A few years ago, Joy gave us DNA kits from Ancestry.com. She helped me build my family tree, and I learned that my dad’s family came from County Mayo in northwest Ireland. As it turns out, I am 50% Irish (100% on my birth father’s side). I also learned that Joy’s husband, Ross, had Baker ancestors from County Clare that settled in the same area of Wisconsin where my ancestors settled. Joy teased that maybe Ross and I were cousins!

Working together, Joy and I created a travel itinerary that revolved around visiting Ross’s roots and mine, as well as hitting some of the top tourist spots in Ireland.  

The trip was magical. Hearing the language and music made my heart sing, and it was shocking to me how I felt a smile rising from deep down inside me that lasted the entire trip. I felt at peace, at home. I love the Irish music and the playful people. The first day, we walked around Dublin and jumped on a “hop-on hop-off “ bus tour to get an overview of the city. Truth be told, we were so exhausted from the long flight and jet lag, we hopped on, but never actually hopped off. The driver kept teasing us (“For the love of God, hop OFF people!”), but after the all-night flight we were happy to just see the sights, hear the history, and get back to our hotel for a nap.

The next day, we hopped on the train for Galway and played a game of 500 along the way. We ended up chatting with four travelers across the aisle from us who offered insights on where to go and what to see. Irish people are so chatty and friendly! (Although, I have to admit, even though we were all speaking English, I really had to concentrate to understand what they were saying because of their thick—but delightful—Irish accents.)

The highlights from our trip were many and varied.

We loved the Cliffs of Moher and imagined being the first humans to discover them. I could feel a sensational spirit connection to the earth, the sky, and the water. For the most part we had beautiful, sunny weather every day of our trip, except for a short burst of rain at the Cliffs of Moher that was followed by a glorious rainbow.

On our way to Limerick, Joy and I sang Irish songs (karaoke style) in the back seat of the car as Ross negotiated driving on the left side of the road. That night, we visited an Irish pub that featured live music. We joined in on the singing and watched in awe as a young woman with the band performed some traditional Irish step dancing. It was like we were in the middle of a movie!

We visited several cathedrals along the way, lit candles of remembrance, and also visited a few castles. We especially had fun taking pictures of Ross at Ross Castle on the Ring of Kerry!

One of the biggest highlights of the trip was our stay at Ashford Castle. Staying overnight in a castle has always been a dream of mine, and it certainly was met here!

We left Limerick early in the day to make it in time for our 2 PM “Hawk Walk” on the castle grounds. Our guide introduced us to“Bilbo” and “Samwise,” two sibling hawks that were surprisingly social. They rested in our outstretched arms, then flew away on command, gliding smoothly through the air and often hiding in the trees. When we wanted them to come back, we raised our forearms as our guide gave a whistle, and the hawks would land again, rewarded by the guide’s treats. It was so peaceful to walk through those lush, glorious woods, at one with these beautiful, intelligent birds.

Every aspect of our journey was meaningful. Joy is an incredible researcher and was able to figure out the town where my Earley ancestors once lived. We made our way to Belmullet in County Mayo, and someone suggested that we should head over to the Civic Center where we met Kathleen and Ian. When we told them we were looking for my Early/Earley ancestors, they called Geraldine (whose Godmother was an Early), and she promptly stopped by to help.

Between the three of them, they seemed to know everyone who had ever lived in the area. It turns out my family name, Earley, is not very common, so it triggered a lot of information (including the fact that it’s sometimes spelled Earley with an -ey at the end, and sometimes just Early, but it’s all the same family.)

Kathleen, Ian, and Geraldine spent over an hour helping us, using their phones and computers to come up with possible relatives. It turns out that Geraldine has Early/Earley relatives on her family tree that are also on my tree, so it could be that we’re distant cousins!

Ian was able to narrow down the cemetery where some of the Earleys were buried, so he and Geraldine even offered to hop in their car and lead us there! We found the gravestone of Martin Earley, who was buried near his sister, Bridget (AKA “Lillie”). I couldn’t help but think how ironic it was that Jerry’s mother was “Lil” and we have a granddaughter named Lili. This Bridget (Lillie) died in 2011 at the age of 103! I should be so lucky!

I left Belmullet feeling enriched and connected. Discovering some of the relatives who came before me was incredibly moving, and I received something in return that I hadn’t even known I’d lost—family. I now have a deeper understanding of the Earley family’s journey that brought my great great Grandparents to Erin, Wisconsin, then to St. Paul, which brought my dad, Robert, to St. Paul Central High School where he met my mom, Eunice, and they created my sisters and me. I was the fourth Early girl.

Jerry and I spent our last day on a tour to Newgrange, a neolithic passage tomb that is 500 years older than the Great Pyramids, and 1000 years older than Stonehenge. We had to crouch to enter the dark, narrow passageway that took us to the inner sanctum of Newgrange, and it was there we saw the true brilliance of their construction. The roof was slanted with gigantic, heavy rocks that were each strategically placed, without any filler or mortar like we would use today. The architecture was incredible, with each stone stacked in such a way that prevented rain or water from ever seeping into the inner chamber. Brilliant!

Newgrange truly is special. Every year at the winter solstice, the sun lines up perfectly and shines light directly through the long narrow passageway which lights up the entire inner sanctum for 17 minutes. Being inside that magical and sacred space, I kept wondering how they could possibly have figured that out so long ago. This historic site was built over multiple generations, using blocks of stone that weighed 10 to 20 tons. And every December 22nd at sunrise, the lighting of the inner sanctum still occurs. Amazing.

During the era when Newgrange was built, we learned people were lucky if they lived to be 30 years old. I kept wondering, what were their lives like back then? Did they have any time for joy and laughter? What were their thoughts on life and death? What do we think about all of this today? Do we even take time to ponder life’s meaning or our own individual purpose now that we tend to live much longer? What did they do that gave them pleasure? What do I do in my life that gives me pleasure?

This whole journey to Ireland was profoundly deep and strengthening for me. Laughing, singing, putting our feet in the ocean, touching the sand, feeling the earth, breathing the air, hearing the lilting Irish voices, joining in on their song, being with friends, marveling at the flowers—I felt like I had found a piece of me that I’d never really known. I felt at peace, happy, renewed, energized—and connected to something that was so much bigger than myself.

HUGE thanks to Joy, who is one of the most brilliant, optimistic, dedicated, happiness-building people that I know. To Ross, who is so much fun and always willing to take on difficult challenges (like keeping everyone happy while driving in a new country on the opposite side of the road with a carful of back seat drivers). My love and gratitude to Jerry who always enjoys life (and learning), and is a great sport at “going with the flow” and taking it all in.

I am so grateful to now carry a warm place in my heart for all my Irish relatives who went through so much in their own lives, yet continued to sing, dance, and keep that sparkle in their eyes. Thank you.

My parting thoughts: Sing, reflect, laugh, be with friends, continue to learn, do things that make you happy, dance, bring cheer to others, do what you can to make things better, live fully.

Where to next?

Big news!

Joy and I are truly honored to be keynote speakers at the 35th International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI)!

ISHI is the largest annual meeting focusing entirely on DNA forensics and will celebrate its 35th anniversary September 23—26 in San Antonio. The annual meeting on DNA forensics welcomes more than 900 forensic DNA experts and law enforcement professionals from around the world. Promega Corporation, a developer and manufacturer of products for DNA-based human identification, has sponsored ISHI since its inception.

From Evidence to Narrative: The Convergence of True Crime Media and DNA Forensics

The 2024 ISHI Keynote session will spotlight the intersection of true crime media and DNA forensics. A panel of speakers will share insights and experiences that underscore the role of DNA in connecting the past with the present and shaping the future.

Speakers include:

• Patty Wetterling – Advocate of children’s safety and past chair of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

• Joy Baker – Co-author of Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope and blogger

• Professor Turi King – Scientist, presenter, speaker and author who is passionate about communicating science to the public

• Dr. Anna Barbaro – President of the Worldwide Association of Women Forensic Experts

• Ashley Flowers – Founder of AudioChuck, podcaster, author and advocate

ISHI attracts forensic experts representing 40+ countries and a variety of professions including criminalists, research scientists, lab directors, CODIS analysts and forensic scientists to discuss the latest advances in forensic DNA analysis. Media are invited to attend and must pre-register.

Visit www.ishinews.com for agenda, registration and updates.

Upcoming Events

If you’re interested in setting up a speaking event, please contact Jim Cihlar at MNHS Press for details.

• 9/29/2024 **UPDATED** – Patty, Trinity Lutheran Church, Orono, MN – 10:00 AM

• 10/17/2024 – Patty and Joy, Douglas County Library/Community Ed, Discovery Middle School, Alexandria, MN – 6:30 PM

Book Clubs

We are visiting book clubs and discussing Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on Zoom! In return, we ask that your book club make a donation of any amount to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. Message us for details. We look forward to sharing Dear Jacob with you!

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

Follow Joy at JoyTheCurious.com

If you’re not already following Joy’s Substack, you can find her at JoyTheCurious.com. Check out her latest story called “Sentenced to College: The Angel Hernandez Story.”

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope was released on October 17th, 2023 by MNHS Press. You can purchase it at your favorite bookseller, or ask for it at your local library.

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

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On our trip to Arizona, Joy and I learned a lot more about the Minnesota Historical Society's rich history. Kent Whitworth, Director and CEO of MNHS traveled with us and spoke of the many ways that MNHS preserves Minnesota’s past, shares our state's stories, and connects people with history in meaningful ways. We also learned that the Minnesota Historical Society was founded in 1849—almost ten years before Minnesota even became a state! It has now grown to become the largest and most prestigious historical society in the country.

Taking Dear Jacob on the road meant a lot to both of us, as we have seen and heard the impact that Jacob’s abduction had on children and parents everywhere. We have met adults Jacob’s age whose lives were forever changed in 1989 and who find the book clarifying and helpful in healing through their own childhood trauma. Parents back in 1989 now have 11-year-old grandchildren and play active roles in their lives. They are happy to meet us and feel the collective energy that’s generated when all of us pull together to build a safer world for kids.

This very special trip was made possible by the amazing people at MNHS. Thank you to Ann Regan, Acting Director and Editor in Chief of MNHS Press, for believing in us from the very beginning. We first met her over lunch at Maynards in Rogers back in January of 2020, just before the pandemic. We were well into our first draft by that time and Ann offered solid suggestions about moving forward, finding an agent, and sending out queries. 

On our Arizona and Florida trips, Ann not only took on her role as Acting Director and Editor in Chief for MNHS Press, she also served as moderator at our book presentations, photographer for those who wanted photos, chauffeur, and overall travel coordinator. She couldn’t have been a more delightful (and patient) traveling partner.

Many thanks to Laura Koerner-Koepplin, Jenn Pogatchnik and Rhonda Teich-Hickey for helping coordinate the three member events; to Jim Cihlar for coordinating our book signing in Phoenix; and to Suzanne Herrick for arranging our appearance on Arizona’s #1 morning show, “Good Morning Arizona.”

And of course, a huge thanks to the many members, friends, and family who joined us for these wonderful events! It was fun to meet, chat, and hear the many strong family ties to Minnesota history.

We continue to be grateful for the strong support we have received from the Minnesota Historical Society and MNHS Press. Before starting our presentations, Ann Regan always shared their organization’s vision statement: “The people of Minnesota will be grounded in their personal, community, and state history. They will understand how history shapes, inspires, and informs the present.  As a result they will be better citizens of their communities, their state, their country, and the world..”

Joy and I are both honored and grateful to stand with this vision. Thank you to all of the amazing people who allowed us to bring Dear Jacob out of Minnesota and help spread our story of hope to a wider audience.

Spring Library Tour

This spring, we’ll be visiting several area libraries and bookstores as we continue our Dear Jacob book tour. This Thursday, we’ll be at Content Bookstore in Northfield if you live in the southeast area of Minnesota. Keep checking our Events page for the most up-to-date listings!

Also, if you’re interested in setting up an event at your local library, please contact Jim Cihlar at MNHS Press for details.

• 4/4/2024 – Patty and Joy, Content Book Store, Northfield, MN – 7:00 PM

• 5/1/2024 – Patty and Joy, Cold Spring Library / Historical Society (location TBD), Cold Spring, MN – 6:30 PM

• 5/6/2024 – Patty and Joy, Martin County Library, Fairmont, MN – 6:00 PM

• 5/11/2024 – Patty and Joy, Crosby-Ironton High School, Crosby, MN – 2:00 PM

• 5/14/2024 – Patty and Joy, Hutchinson Public Library, Hutchinson, MN – 6:30 PM

• 5/20/2024 – Patty and Joy, Owatonna Public Library, Owatonna, MN – 6:00 PM

• 5/30/2024 – Patty and Joy, Watonwan Public Library, St. James MN – 6:00 PM

Book Clubs

Several people have asked us if we’d be willing to visit their book club and discuss Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope. Of course, we would love to do this! After talking it over, we decided it would be best to do this via Zoom to reach a broader audience and limit our travel. In return, we just suggest that your book club make a donation of any amount to the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. We look forward to sharing Dear Jacob with you!

Joy the Curious

If you’re not already following Joy’s Substack at JoyTheCurious.com, check out her latest story called “Sentenced to College: The Angel Hernandez Story.” Chapter 3 is coming soon, so start from the beginning with this sneak peek:

[ j o y . t h e . c u r i o u s ]

I'm back!

Hello friends! Goodness, it’s been a while hasn’t it? If you’ve been wondering what’s become of me and my blog, well… here I am! Truth be told, I’m actually in St. Petersburg, Florida right now, practicing to be a snowbird. My friend Jane and I rented a lovely AirBnb f…

Read more

2 years ago · 20 likes · 12 comments · Joy Baker

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope was released on October 17th, 2023 by MNHS Press. You can purchase it at your favorite bookseller, or ask for it at your local library.

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

Leave a comment

Share

Today—February 17, 2024—is your birthday. You were only 11 when you were taken from us and you had a world full of possibilities in front of you.  Glancing through old photos, I am reminded of very happy celebrations and the gift of time we had with you.

Glancing through old photos, I see a very determined 2-year-old working hard to figure things out. I see a 5-year old baby brother who loved playing dolls with his older sister, Amy. And, I see 9-year-old in his favorite Vikings jersey, surrounded by friends and making a birthday wish.

Jacob, you were playful, sweet, emotional, and smart. You had a great sense of humor and loved just being with your friends and family. How we longed for more birthdays to celebrate! I believe it was you, Jacob, guiding us through all of these years and reminding us of the magical time of being 11—of dreams and friends and possibilities. 

While traveling with Joy for the Dear Jacob book signings, I am constantly reminded of all of the people across this state and nation who have carried you in their hearts… and still do!  They believe in hope, and that the world you knew is worth fighting for. 

Jacob, you have changed the world, and while I thought you might grow up to be a veterinarian, or sports broadcaster, or the football player you had always wanted to be, you didn’t get that chance. Instead you have become an ambassador for all children.  Your bright smile and sparkly eyes have given people meaning and purpose in their own lives. Your classmates have become advocates for children, and they carry you with them in their classrooms, their courtrooms, their office places and their family homes.   

Happy Birthday, Jacob.  We thank you for all you have taught us, and we are grateful for the precious years that you were physically with us.  We will carry you in our hearts forever.

Love,
Mom

In 1993, when Jacob turned 15, his Aunt Barbi (my sister) from California wrote this letter to him. My sister Nancy ran across it this week and shared it with me.

Barbi lived in California with her husband, John, and because she didn’t have any children of her own, she always loved all of her nieces and nephews as if they were hers. After Jacob was kidnapped, Barbi came to stay with us and helped me get back my feet back under me again. She had an amazing ability to help me see things from a different perspective and always sent thoughtful message on Jacob’s birthday.

The beginning of Barbi’s letter from 1993 is an excerpt from a short story titled “Eleven” by Sandra Cisneros. It’s part of a longer story that captures all the big emotions of being eleven—especially that “in between” stage of wanting to grow up and be a teenager, but at the same time, still wanting to remain a kid. I invite you to watch the video and try to remember what it was like to be eleven as the author reads the full story.

Today, on Jacob’s 46th birthday, I ask that each one of us try to tap into that child within and somehow find a way to be 11 again. Allow yourself to care about things as deeply as 11-year-olds do, like that desire to be hugged and rocked while still striving to be strong and tough. Honor that younger child within each of us. Allow yourself to be vulnerable. To not fight back tears. To reflect on the years that have made us who we are today. To be open to the honesty of what today’s children are telling us. 

To be kind.  

May we each make a wish for things to be better. Be brave enough to dream. Believe we can each make a difference. Commit to doing our best. May we honor children, be there for them, say a little prayer for those who are struggling, and may we always believe in a world that is fair, caring, and happy, just as Jacob did.

Today, I ask everyone to light a candle for Jacob’s birthday. Make a wish and believe that, together, we can build a world where kids have the right to grow up safe and follow their dreams.

Audiobook winners!

For Jacob’s birthday, we decided to give away FIVE free audiobooks of Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope. Participants were asked leave a comment and share their favorite birthday memory as a child. It was so heartwarming to read all of your replies!

Audiobook winners were emailed a free promo code that could be redeemed at Audiobooks.com. Check your email to find out if you were one of our winners.

You can find the audio version of Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope on all the major audio platforms, including Audible, Audiobooks.com, Apple Books.com, Hoopla, Libby, Libro.fm, Google Play Books, and Everand. If you’re interested in listening to a sample of Dear Jacob, click the following link.

https://www.audiobooks.com/book/stream/717092

Hope you enjoy it!

—Patty

Join us in Arizona!

We’ll be speaking at a few private events in Scottsdale and Tucson next week, and while we’re there, we’ll also be appearing at a public book signing at Changing Hands Bookstore in Phoenix. We would love to see some friendly faces if you happen to be living, visiting, or snowbirding in the Phoenix area!

Here’s a link to the Facebook event if you’d like to share with friends and family: https://fb.me/e/1PEziwZnv2

Upcoming Author Events

Additional events, links and details will be added as they become available. Dates and times subject to change. Please check our Events page at DearJacobBook.com for final confirmation.

• 2/21/2024 – Patty and Joy, Changing Hands Bookstore, Phoenix, AZ – 6:30 PM MST

• 3/28/2024 – Patty, Copper Pony, Sauk Rapids, MN – 5:00 PM

• 4/4/2024 – Patty and Joy, Content Book Store, Northfield, MN – 7:00 PM

• 5/1/2024 – Patty and Joy, Cold Spring Library, Cold Spring, MN – TBD

• 5/6/2024 – Patty and Joy, Martin County Library, Fairmont, MN – 5:00 PM

• 5/14/2024 – Patty and Joy, Hutchinson Public Library, Hutchinson, MN – TBD

• More coming soon!

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We also love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope was released on October 17th, 2023 by MNHS Press. You can purchase it at your favorite bookseller, or ask for it at your local library.

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

Leave a comment

Share

In January, we both vacationed in Florida and Jerry and I finally got a chance to see “her house” — Villa am Meer — the rundown beach home on Longboat Key that she’d been walking by and wondering about for 15 years before it was saved and restored. In 2010, this little ramshackle house finally piqued her curiosity enough that she decided to create a blog and start writing about it at JoyTheCurious.com. And once that mystery was finally solved, that’s what led her to start blogging about Jacob’s story… which led to the start of our very deep friendship and, eventually, to Jacob. So, it felt pretty amazing to finally see Villa am Meer for real and hear how much it meant to her. It was this historic little beachfront home that started it all.

Read Joy’s “Villa am Meer” story from the beginning

 Jerry and I were so ready for a break, especially this winter. We breathed in the cool salty air. My dry skin softened with the humidity. The seafood was divine. We didn’t have any meetings or zoom calls, so for most of the first week, it was just us—Jerry and me. The second week, we visited some dear friends in Clearwater, then drove up to Georgia to visit family. In spite of the cool, cloudy and rainy weather that persisted the whole two weeks we were there, we had a great time. But, as Dorothy said, “There’s no place like home”—and after two weeks, Penny was sure happy to see us!)

Back at it!

On February 1, Joy and I were honored to deliver the keynote for the Minnesota Newspaper Association’s 157th Annual Convention. It took place at the Minneapolis Marriott Northwest in Brooklyn Park (not far from Joy’s high school). I was so grateful for the opportunity to thank the media, and especially our local St. Cloud Times. We included the following slides that showed the cover stories they ran for the first full week after Jacob’s abduction, just to demonstrate the immediacy of the investigation and their extensive coverage of it. The St. Cloud Times was the first newspaper to run the story on Monday, October 23, 1989 (Jacob was kidnapped the night before).

I keep thinking about all of the people that have been so affected by Jacob’s abduction. At our author events, several of these people have shared with us their stories about how healing it has been them to revisit their journeys, and also how their lives were forever changed by no longer being allowed to ride their bikes, walk to their friends’ houses alone, or just plain feel as safe like they had before Jacob was taken.  I have hugged many adults at book signings and felt their stories of loss so deeply.

There is power in coming together and not feeling so alone. We have received many kind words from people replying to this Substack, from emails, and from regular old “mailbox mail.” Many share how impacted they were, how they searched and prayed, or how they lost their own children for just a few minutes while shopping and the sheer panic that it caused. They remember where they lived when Jacob was taken and how it felt to be raising young children during that troubling time. Many have visited the abduction site, the area where he was found, and even his gravesite to leave thoughts, flowers, and prayers. Many others share stories of leaving lights on for Jacob and still never turning them off.

I love hearing how Dear Jacob has stirred people to love their own children and grandchildren more deeply.  After reading the book, one dear man shared, “You have provided others a formula, a pathway, a trail to follow should horror ever visit their home.” We all gain strength by helping others, just as I drew strength from so many of you. I hope you are finding good thoughts and hope in Jacob’s story and that you will share the hope as best you can in little ways and big as we continue on our life’s journeys.

With hope,
Patty

So many updates to share!

• First, the TED talk that I presented at TEDxStCloud last fall is now on YouTube.

• Second, I recently interviewed with Newsweek for an article that will be the first of a series on missing person cases:

  https://www.newsweek.com/revolution-hunt-americas-missing-1866229

• Third, it will be Jacob’s birthday next week on February 17, 2024. Watch for another special post on that day.

• Fourth, Joy recently moved her blog to Substack and has been writing a new story called “Sentenced to College.” It’s about a young 18-year-old gang member from Willmar, Minnesota (just south of her home in New London) who was arrested on several counts of gang-related crimes in 1999. But after being convicted by a jury, the judge on the case decided on an alternative sentence for this young man. Instead of sentencing him to prison, he sentenced him to college. It’s a fascinating story and I invite you to follow it at JoyTheCurious.com!

• Finally, our publisher has been busy lining up more author talks and book signings for us this spring! 

  • We’ll be presenting to members of the Minnesota Historical Society who snowbird in Arizona and Florida in February and March. While we’re there, MNHS Press is also lining up public book signings and we would love to see some friendly Minnesota faces if you happen to be in the area! We are so looking forward to this and, once again, thanks to the Minnesota Historical Society Press for setting these up!

  • We’ll also be visiting several local libraries and other venues in greater Minnesota starting in late March. Keep checking back to see the newest updates!

Upcoming Author Events

Additional events, links and details will be added as they become available. Dates and times subject to change. Please check our Events page at DearJacobBook.com for final confirmation.

• 2/21/2024 – Patty and Joy, Changing Hands Bookstore, Phoenix, AZ – 6:30 PM MST

• 3/28/2024 – Patty, Copper Pony, Sauk Rapids, MN – 5:00 PM

• 4/4/2024 – Patty and Joy, Content Book Store, Northfield, MN – 7:00 PM

• 5/1/2024 – Patty and Joy, Cold Spring Library, Cold Spring, MN – TBD

• 5/6/2024 – Patty and Joy, Martin County Library, Fairmont, MN – 5:00 PM

• 5/14/2024 – Patty and Joy, Hutchinson Public Library, Hutchinson, MN – TBD

• More coming soon!

Rankings and reviews

If you enjoyed reading Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope, please give it a positive rating and leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, or wherever you purchased your book. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We also love libraries, and would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope was released on October 17th, 2023 by MNHS Press. You can purchase it at your favorite bookseller, or ask for it at your local library.

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

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Today is Wednesday, November 8, 2023. We’re certain of this because we just checked a calendar, but truthfully the last three weeks have been such a blur, the question we often ask each other as we’re on our way to the next event is… “What day is it?”

The media interviews have slowed down a bit, and we’re a little over halfway through our calendar of book signings and author talks. Many thanks to Jim Cihlar and Suzanne Herrick, our talented marketing and publicity team at Minnesota Historical Society Press for keeping us so busy!

Here’s a list of what’s coming up in the days ahead. You can also check the Events page at DearJacobBook.com to view any additions or updates to the list. (More will be added!)

Upcoming Author Events

• 11/9/2023 – Excelsior Bay Books, at Mount Calvary Lutheran Church, 7 PM

• 11/15/2023 – Next Chapter Booksellers, St. Paul, 6 PM

• 11/18/2023 – Cross Roads Community Church, Spicer, 2 PM

  • Free admission, registration required

• 11/25/2023 – NEW! – Chase on the Lake, Walker, 2 PM

  • Free admission, registration required

• 12/1/2023 – Barnes and Noble, Edina, 6 PM

• 12/5/2023 – NEW! – College of St. Benedict, St. Joseph, 6:30 PM

  • In-person event, free admission, registration required

  • Live streaming event, free admission, registration required

The past three weeks

By Patty

Wow.  For the past three weeks, Joy and I have been out and about with the release of Dear Jacob, and it has been delightful.  Sharing the stage with Joy has been fun and entertaining.  We have an outline, but I seem to wander off topic a lot and Joy has a magical way of bringing it back around.  We bounce off one another and try to share some fun parts of the writing process, even though it was often hard and exhausting.

The feedback we’ve been receiving has been fun and heartening to read.

“All the accolades from all the attendees are TRUE. You have a gift (so many gifts) and the way you support and respect one another is beyond inspiring. You sincerely admire each other. What you have created (your “Dear Jacob” book and your relationship) is a rare gift. Everyone who was able to bear witness to that is changed for the better.”

“Dear Patty, thank you so much for your wonderful book, Dear Jacob. I remember hearing the news of Jacob’s kidnapping and being afraid. I was also 11 years old and had one brother and two sisters. Minnesotans have never forgotten Jacob and we never will. I am a history professor now and start class with defining moments that shape our personal history and Jacob is one of those defining moments in my history. Thank you again for sharing Jacob with us.”

“We went to your book signing in Duluth and your book is wonderfully written as well as incredibly inspiring to always be hopeful in life!”

Thank you all so much for your kind words! Over the years, many people encouraged me to write my story and share how I managed to survive such a horrible tragedy. They told me that my perseverance was strengthening to them as they encountered their own life challenges, like illness, injury, or the sudden loss of a loved one. I thought if I could help anyone else through their “stuff,” maybe it could help me keep going, as well.

But then, Jacob was found and I was so lost. After nearly 27 years of searching, it all ended so abruptly. After such a long time, this second round of trauma unfolded in only eight days and left us little time to process, much less heal. We were all left with a sense of, “What Just Happened?”

Writing this memoir gave me the  opportunity to reflect. It added meaning to some of the journey. It allowed me to feel the pain, but not to carry it so heavily. Freeing up some of the sorrow made room for more happiness and love to enter. I could let go of the fear of always wondering what Jacob must be going through, and instead, find peace in knowing that no one could hurt him again. I was able to celebrate the gift that he was to all of us who knew and loved him so dearly. 

With Joy’s help, Dear Jacob finally became a reality. At each book signing event, we meet many wonderful people who share their own stories with us. Yesterday in Waseca, several police officers waited in line for hugs, which always warms my heart. Later, one woman tearfully shared how she had only been seven years old when Jacob was kidnapped and she remembered how it had affected her childhood. Another young woman shared that she had just had her first child and was so deeply moved as she held her little boy and listened to Jacob’s story. And then, another young mom came through the line and quietly asked for a hug as she fought back tears. She had just lost her baby one year earlier.

Many parents share with me how they have lost their own children, often through violence, accidents or illness. And though it sounds so very sad, there is a collective strength in gathering and sharing with others who get it. They leave amazing notes and letters with me, and I am reaffirmed that we are all in this together.

I thank you all for joining us on this healing journey. I feel Jacob is with us every step of the way and is still guiding us to a world that is kind and fair. We hope that everyone reading the book will leave with a sense of hope, empowerment, and the strength to never give up.

Book pirates

It’s come to our attention that there are scammers on Amazon who are creating pirated versions of Dear Jacob. Often times these scammers create an AI-generated summary of the book, publish it on Amazon, and quickly rake in the profits until they get caught. Amazon removes the book, they change their names, and then they do it all over again.

A few weeks ago, Joy discovered a paperback version of Dear Jacob while browsing Amazon. It had the exact same cover design, but only 100 pages. She immediately reported it, and Amazon took it down, but not before she bought a copy for $12.99, just to see what was in it. Check out the video.

We encourage anyone who received this fraudulent paperback version of Dear Jacob to demand a refund. Perhaps that will encourage Amazon to create a vetting process before allowing scammers to sell whatever they want on their platform.

In addition to this maddening knockoff, there are also “biographies” of me that have some other woman on the cover, and “study guides” for Dear Jacob with who knows what inside. We encourage you to report these fraudulent items as you run across them. Here are a few examples.

Rankings and Reviews

On a lighter note, here’s something else you can do to help us offset the madness on Amazon. If you liked the book, please give it a positive rating and leave a review! We also encourage you to do the same on Goodreads and Barnes & Noble. We love reading your reviews!

Ask for Dear Jacob at your local library

We love libraries, and we would especially love if every library in America had a copy of Dear Jacob on its shelves. Many times there’s an online form you can fill out to request a specific book, but of course it’s just as simple to pick up the phone and call your friendly librarian. Thank you for your supporting your local library!

A short highlight video. Enjoy!

We are so very grateful for the amazing response to Dear Jacob. Thank you to everyone who has purchased a book, attended an event, or offered a kind word. There truly are more good people in the world than bad, and when good people come together, amazing things can happen. #11forJacob

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Our official launch event for Dear Jacob takes place this Wednesday, October 18th at “Talk of the Stacks,” at the downtown Minneapolis Central Library - Pohlad Hall, at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are free, but you must register to attend. There’s also a live virtual option for those who can’t make it in person.

The lovely and talented Jenna Ross from the Minneapolis Star Tribune will be our moderator for the evening, and we are really looking forward to this special kickoff event.

Read Jenna’s recent article: “Patty Wetterling’s new book goes behind-the-scenes of the search for her abducted son, Jacob.”

For more details, and a link to register for “Talk of the Stacks,” see below.

Our weekend

By Joy

Patty and I just had a whirlwind of a weekend. We’re sharing some of the photos we took over the past four days, as well as some brief reflections to go with them. We know there are many more busy days ahead, but we’re both excited to begin this fun new leg of our writing journey.

Deep breath. Here we go.

Thursday: TEDx St. Cloud

By Patty

When I was invited to be one of the speakers at TEDx St. Cloud this year, I was both honored and terrified. I accepted  gratefully, knowing it would take time, but also acknowledging that it would challenge me to create and memorize a 10 minute talk that I hoped would be motivating to people. 

They provided us with a coach, a photographer, a TED Talk book, and best of all, the absolute privilege of meeting five other gifted presenters through ongoing Zoom calls. The whole process was a well-oiled machine!

On the day of the TEDx event last Thursday, we all got to meet in person for a final run through. I had practiced and recited my talk so often over the previous few weeks, I confidently took the stage during dress rehearsal as the last presenter. I was so relieved when I didn’t miss a beat.

Later that evening, I watched in the “Green Room” with my fellow TEDx’ers as each of them stepped center stage and absolutely nailed it!  I was so proud to be part of this amazing team.

Then it was my turn.

I stepped onstage to a standing ovation! Whoa. I wasn’t expecting that. I started speaking, but then totally drew a blank on what came next!  I stood there silent, wracking my brain for some tidbit from my speech. Then, after what seemed like a forever long pause, someone yelled, “You got this Patty!”  I smiled, took a deep breath and started again.

I think I missed a few thoughts but managed to cover most of the rest of my message.  It definitely wasn’t the flawless presentation that all of the others had given, but I spent the next day trying to forgive myself and hoping that people left with a feeling of positive energy and strength to keep moving forward, no matter what. My heart is still full from the warm hugs I received afterwards.

Thank you to all of the organizers and volunteers at TEDX St. Cloud.  It was an amazing evening.

Friday: Jacob’s story featured on 20/20

By Joy

After six months of working closely with producers from ABC’s 20/20, it was finally time to see the end result on primetime TV. Neither Patty nor I had any idea what to expect, and both of us were filled with anxiety. We knew they had spoken to a lot of people who were closely related to the case, but we really had no idea how it would all come together.

When we saw the first trailer that aired earlier in the week, we were even more nervous. It seemed to be everything we’d feared: a dark, dramatic, and sensational promo aimed primarily at the true crime crowd. Ugh. That’s exactly what we didn’t want.

But, ultimately, I think we all breathed a collective sigh of relief as we watched what they actually put together. It was obvious that a lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into this in-depth, multi-layered, and well-researched retelling of Jacob’s story from many different perspectives. It was hard for me watch and the tears streamed down my face more than once, but at the end of the day, we think they did a really nice job.

If you didn’t get a chance to watch 20/20 on Friday night, it’s streaming now on Hulu and probably elsewhere, as well. I assume it will also be streaming soon from the ABC website.

Here are some links to a few of the promos they ran.

Saturday: “Running HOME for Jacob” Walk/Run

By Joy

It was a cool, blustery day out at Lake Phalen Regional Park for the 8th Annual “Running HOME for Jacob” Walk/Run. But that didn’t dampen our spirts, because it was also the very first official book signing for Patty’s new memoir!

We arrived early as event organizers and volunteers were busy setting up tents, preparing race packets, and making sure all the technology worked for easy check-in and registration. Patty and I bundled up and started signing books at 8:15 AM, then again at 11:15 AM after the race was completed.

I think I can speak for both of us when I say how incredibly heartwarming it was to see so many friends and relatives in attendance this year, but also so many complete strangers who came to support the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center. People stood patiently before and after the race, just to have a chance to meet Patty and tell her how much they admire her.

I’ve said this before, but there’s just something about Patty Wetterling. She has an X factor that’s hard to explain, but I think it has something to with the way she magically transforms from a small, shy, soft-spoken woman into this fierce, impassioned mama bear whenever it comes to protecting kids. She is our hero… our Super Mom. And I’m just so stinking proud to be her co-author and friend.

Sunday: Live interview on WCCO Sunday Morning

By Joy

Finally, one last funny story before we go. This morning, Patty and I had to be downtown at the WCCO Studio in Minneapolis for a live interview with Esme Murphy by 10 AM. We both stayed overnight with family on Saturday night to lessen our back-and-forth drive time, so I was happy to unwind and take my time getting ready, knowing I only had a 30 minute drive into Minneapolis versus the 2-hour drive it would have been from my house in New London.

And then… that moment of panic when I suddenly came to a horrifying realization. I’d forgotten to pack my pants. I had NO PANTS to wear on live TV in 60 minutes. I think I may have actually laughed.

I threw on what I had… a pair of faded black leggings with puckered knees and wondered if anyone would notice. I quickly weighed my options. Do I show up with day-old, puckery leggings or race down to WalMart and take my chances that I could find something in 10 minutes? I went with the latter.

By the grace of God and some dumb luck, I found one pair of black pants in my size that was on clearance for ten bucks. I raced through self-checkout, changed in the bathroom, and was back on the road within 15 minutes.

I made it in time, the interview went well, and Patty was amazing as always. Many thanks to Esme Murphy for her glowing review of Dear Jacob and also for her years of compassionate and respectful reporting of Jacob’s case. She is one of many Twin Cities reporters we both consider a friend.

Talk of the Stacks

The "official" launch event for Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope will be held on Wednesday, October 18th at "Talk of the Stacks," sponsored by Friends of the Hennepin County Library. It starts at 6:30 PM and takes place both virtually and in-person inside Pohlad Hall at the Minneapolis Central Library. Tickets are free and we would love to see you there! To get more details or to sign up, visit https://www.supporthclib.org/talk-stacks.

Upcoming Author Events

Our publicity team at Minnesota Historical Society Press has been busy lining up author talks and book signings for us. To see all the latest updates, please visit our Events page.

Official release date this Tuesday!

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope will be out in book stores on Tuesday, October 17th! You can also find them online, or ask for it at your local library.

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

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We’ve been working with the producers from 20/20 since back in April and they’ve been to Minnesota several times to film and interview key people who are close to the case. This includes investigators, suspects, witnesses, reporters, and many more. It promises to be an in-depth reporting of this very long and complicated case, but also a story about hope, resilience, faith and friendship.

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope will be released the same week as the 20/20 episode, so it will be a busy and exciting time for us as we officially kick off our book tour! After so many years of planning, writing, editing and publishing this book, it’s hard to believe it’s only a few weeks away now!

We look forward to meeting many of you at our upcoming author events and book signings! For a full list, please visit our Events page.

Here are a few photos from some of our 20/20 interviews. It’s amazing the amount of setup, coordination, and re-arranging of furniture they need to do just to make this happen!

Talk of the Stacks

The "official" launch event for Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope will be held on Wednesday, October 18th at "Talk of the Stacks," sponsored by Friends of the Hennepin County Library. It starts at 6:30 PM and takes place both virtually and in-person inside Pohlad Hall at the Minneapolis Central Library. Tickets are free and we would love to see you there! To get more details or to sign up, visit https://www.supporthclib.org/talk-stacks.

Upcoming Author Events

Our publicity team at Minnesota Historical Society Press has been busy lining up author talks and book signings for us. To see all the latest updates, please visit our Events page.

Pre-order now

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope is available for pre-order from your favorite bookseller, online retailer, or local library. Here are a few links to choose from:

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

Share

Leave a comment

I love the cooler temps, crisper air, changing leaves, and the absolute beauty that surrounds us in central Minnesota. The fall season was always my favorite, but then everything changed on that unseasonably warm day in 1989 when Jacob was kidnapped. For 27 years, it was hard to enjoy anything fall because it meant having to face that annual turmoil of emotions and sorrow.

When Jacob’s remains were found over Labor Day weekend in 2016, it happened all over again. Our family learned what happened to him one day before the rest of the world heard all the horrible details. It was September 5th — Labor Day — which also happened to be Trevor’s birthday.

Trauma is hard to get past. You can tell yourself that you’re doing better, you can try to ignore the dates. But your body remembers. When the school supplies start showing up on store shelves, the sumac starts to turn red, the Vikings start their preseason games, and everyone enjoys one last blast of summer over the long Labor Day weekend — it all comes rushing back for our family. Every fall, we work hard to get past the sad and keep moving forward.

That’s where so many of you come in. Your kind messages remind me there is still a collective awareness among all who remember the fear and helplessness our family felt back in 1989. For almost 27 years we survived on hope, only to have that taken away from us, too. It was like having the rug ripped out from under us all over again.

Since October 22, 1989, our family has been truly blessed by your kindness. We have been held up by your prayers, candles, flowers, songs, poems, cards, and letters. Thank you for your amazing outpouring of love and support. It has made all the difference.

Jerry, Amy, Trevor, Carmen and I have each had to create our own process of healing. I have no brilliant solution, but I do know one thing for sure. The sharing of support is strengthening. Words matter. Kindness matters. Yesterday I received an amazing note in the mail and it made me smile. I went for a walk just before sunset and watched as an eagle soared high above me, circling our road as the sky turned glorious colors.

“Thank you, God.”

May you and your family enjoy this very special time of year. Soak in the glorious colors and don’t miss an opportunity to share love and gratitude each and every day.

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Talk of the Stacks

The "official" launch event for Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope will be held on Wednesday, October 18th at "Talk of the Stacks," sponsored by Friends of the Hennepin County Library. It starts at 6:30 PM and takes place both virtually and in-person inside Pohlad Hall at the Minneapolis Central Library. Tickets are free and we would love to see you there! To get more details or to sign up, visit https://www.supporthclib.org/talk-stacks.

Upcoming Author Events

Our publicity team at Minnesota Historical Society Press has been busy lining up author talks and book signings for us. To see all the latest updates, please visit our new Events page.

Pre-order now

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope is available for pre-order from your favorite bookseller, online retailer, or local library. Here are a few links to choose from:

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon

Welcome to the first edition of our new Dear Jacob newsletter! Joy and I are excited to use this new online publication to share news and updates about the October 17th release of my new memoir: Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope.

The Minnesota Historical Society Press has a fabulous team working to get the word out through book signings and events, as well as local and national press. We will post these as they develop, and we hope you’ll share with others!

Our first big event will be on Saturday, October 14th at the 8th annual “Running HOME for Jacob Run/Walk” at Lake Phelan Regional Park in St. Paul. Event organizers at the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center (JWRC), together with Next Chapter Booksellers in St. Paul, will be hosting a pre-release book signing for us at this year’s race. Books will be available for purchase at the event, and Joy and I will be donating all proceeds to JWRC.

HOME stands for "Hope for Our Missing and Exploited.” You can register for either the 5K or 11K event, and you can participate virtually from your own hometown, or in-person with us at Lake Phalen. There’s also a children’s 1.1K race that takes place at 9:45 AM, prior to the 5K.

At the inaugural “Running HOME for Jacob” event in 2016 (the year Jacob was found), over 2,000 people crossed the finish line in support of our family and JWRC. This huge response brought me to tears, and now – after three years of virtual-only events – we're all looking forward to seeing everyone in person again!

Please join us in sharing the hope. The early bird deadline has been extended to September 1st, so please register today at https://raceroster.com/events/2023/72145/2023-running-home-for-jacob-hybrid-runwalk.

—Patty Wetterling

A message from Joy

Back in November, I convinced a very reluctant Patty Wetterling to start a new Facebook page so she could connect with her legions of loyal fans. To the surprise of no one (except her), the page quickly grew to over 9,400 followers, and on April 21st, a post about Patty and Jerry’s 50th wedding anniversary went absolutely bonkers, with over 38,000 likes, 8,800 comments and 576 shares. Clearly, people all over Minnesota and beyond love this woman who has worked so hard to change laws and keep all our children safe.

Follow Patty on Facebook

Patty has been a real social media trooper, but knowing not everyone is on Facebook, I worried she wasn’t reaching some of the people who wanted to hear from her the most.

That’s why we started this Dear Jacob newsletter. With this direct online medium, we hope to share updates about the book, a schedule of upcoming author events, and personal reflections from both Patty and me.

As you can imagine, writing Jacob’s story was a long process that took its toll both mentally and emotionally. It is an absolute labor of love, and in true Patty Wetterling fashion, she wore her heart on her sleeve throughout this story, telling it in the most raw and real way imaginable.

We can’t wait to share the story with you, and we hope you’ll continue to follow us on this very long and winding journey!

—Joy Baker

Upcoming Author Events

For an updated list of all our author talks and book signings, please visit our Events page.

Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope is now available for pre-order from your favorite bookseller, online retailer, or local library. Here are a few links to get you started:

• Minnesota Historical Society bookstore

• Bookshop.org

• Barnes & Noble

• Target

• Amazon