Dear Jacob

A Mother's Journey of Hope

Patty Wetterling with Joy Baker

Minnesota Historical Society Press (January 14, 2025)

Tens of thousands of readers embraced Dear Jacob: A Mother’s Journey of Hope when it was first published in hardcover in 2023; now the paperback edition, featuring a new afterword, invites even more to experience this amazing story.

Description

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.

Within days, the call to find Jacob traveled far and wide, with hundreds of stories in local and national media, including coverage in the New York Times. Minnesota’s governor sent National Guard troops to aid in the search. Around the country, people posted flyers, sent letters of support, and turned on porch lights in solidarity. As the criminal investigation stretched from weeks to months to years, Patty 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. Punctuated by Patty’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. 

Cowritten 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, happiness, joy, and hope.

Author Information

Patty Wetterling is a national advocate, visionary, and educator on the prevention of child abduction and exploitation. She served on the board of directors for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children from 1991 to 2021 and was its chair from 2012 to 2015. She also co-founded Team HOPE, a national support group for families of missing children. She is now a national consultant, presenting at child abuse conferences and law enforcement trainings. Patty has received many awards, and she was named one of the 100 Most Influential Minnesotans of the Century by the Minneapolis Star Tribune in 1999.

Joy Baker, the writer, blogger, and investigative journalist who uncovered key evidence in Jacob's case, blogs at JoyTheCurious.com. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Minnesota and, for 20 years, was co-owner of a central Minnesota advertising agency. Joy works as an independent marketing consultant, professional copywriter, and writing coach. Her work on Jacob's case has been featured in print and broadcast media as well as true crime podcasts.

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