Wetterling speaks to large crowd here
Patty Wetterling, nationally recognized advocate of children’s safety and current chair of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, spoke to a large audience in Springfield the evening of January 11 — her first community presentation since the remains of her son, Jacob, were discovered and positively identified.
Wetterling described what it was like to wait 27 years to learn the fate of her son. Jacob was kidnapped, sexually abused and murdered on Oct. 22, 1989. His abduction remained a mystery for nearly 27 years. On Sept. 1, 2016, the FBI recovered Jacob’s remains from a pasture near Paynesville, about 30 miles from his St. Joseph home. Danny Heinrich, a longtime person of interest in the case, confessed to the kidnapping and murder on Sept.6.
“People always ask about my feelings when I learned what actually happened to Jacob, and how I am doing?” she told a crowd of approximately 1,200 people gathered in the Springfield High School gymnasium. “I wanted to go home and never come out again,” she said.
However, Wetterling continues to fight for the safety of all children, and that’s what she spoke about here last week.
Over the years, during public and private conversations, Wetterling spoke of her son with the hope of his returning home one day. Her advocacy particularly focuses on protecting children from abduction and abuse and how we can create a better world for them.
“Children have the right to dream and grow big,” said Wetterling as she began her presentation while video pictures of son Jacob played overhead. In those pictures taken 10 days before his abduction, Jacob talked about what he wanted to do when he grew up — his hopes and dreams for his future.
Wetterling’s talk was positive and based on information and education. She urged that fear be replaced with positive energy. “Fear can be debilitating. Knowledge is a much better route to go,” she said. “I refuse to let the man who took Jacob, take anything else.”
“Make sure your kids are connected to at least five meaningful adults. Have people your children can connect with — an uncle, an aunt, a neighbor or other adults they trust,” Wetterling told her audience. “Talk to them. Civic engagement is a very positive thing to teach kids about the world. It’s about hope and potential.”
“How we raise our children matters so that they grow up not to harm others,” she said. “It’s about nurturing relationships.”
She urged all adults to step up and show children the way. “Our world is starving for tenderness.