Oct 22, 2009 10:20 am US/Central
20th Anniversary Of Jacob Wetterling Abduction
(WCCO)
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A photo of Jacob Wetterling from the year he was taken (left) and an age-adjusted image of what he may have looked like at age 29 (right).
CBS
This Thursday,
Jacob Wetterling's family will mark the 20th anniversary of his disappearance.
On Oct. 22, 1989, a masked man with a gun kidnapped Jacob in rural St. Joseph, Minn. Eleven-year-old Jacob was biking home from a convenience store with his brother, Trevor, and a friend.
In the two decades since the abduction, Jacob's mom, Patty Wetterling, has worked tirelessly to make the world safe for other children. This week she is also bracing for another anniversary without knowing what happened to her son.
In an interview with WCCO-TV reporter Caroline Lowe, Wetterling talked about the emotions she and her family go through every time an anniversary approaches.
"For me, every fall, there is this whole body experience of knowing that the abduction time is nearby," said Wetterling. "I just keep scratching my head, like, 'What haven't we done? What else do we need to do to find Jacob and the man who took him and get some answers?' Because we do need answers. I think the entire state of Minnesota needs answers."
Answers that have never come, despite hundreds of searches and tips.
"We were really carried by the people in our community and throughout the state from the beginning, when so many people said, 'I don't know how you do it, I couldn't get out of bed," said Wetterling. "We couldn't either, we couldn't. We were really lifted up by so many amazing people, and it's working. It's carried us for a long, long time."
Wetterling said she has never given up hope.
"I simply don't know. I never had this overwhelming sense that he died. A lot of parents will tell you they knew exactly the moment, they felt it. And I didn't have that happen, so I don't have that sense that he's not alive," she explained.
But the anniversary of the last time Wetterling saw her son never stops hurting.
"I just want to curl up in a ball all over again on the 22nd. I want to be home. I don't want to think. I don't want to do anything. I just want to be," said Wetterling. "It is a time to remember and reflect and honor Jacob. And hope that one day, maybe this year, we will have our answers."
Jacob would be 31 years old now. Wetterling finds hope when she sees reunions like the recent one between
Jaycee Dugard and her family. She survived 18 years as a prisoner of a man who snatched her from a school bus stop in California.
"I dream about having that opportunity," said Wetterling.
And she hopes the 20-year anniversary of Jacob's abduction prompts someone to come forward. Maybe even his kidnapper.
"Twenty years is a long time to carry that kind of guilt or pain," said Wetterling.
As she waits for answers, Wetterling works as a nationally-recognized advocate for child safety. She is also is charge of
sexual violence prevention education at the Minnesota Department of Health. Earlier this week, she was a guest on an episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show that focused on making a better world for children.
"I am fighting for the world that Jacob knew and believed in. A world where our kids can grow up safe. It's really our adult job to build this world. It is not their job to not get kidnapped," said Wetterling.
Last Saturday night, the Wetterling family hosted
a children's concert to mark the abduction anniversary. Jacob's favorite singer, Red Grammer, performed.
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