Patty Wetterling

Thank you, Stan. It's good to hear your voice again.

Thank you, Stan. It's good to hear your voice again.

Oh, gosh. It was when Jacob was kidnapped, I As you said, I was a stay-at-home mom. I knew nothing about child victimization. Who would do that? I mean, it was out of my realm of consciousness. It was like the rug being pulled out from under you. So I had no foundation to stand on. And our kids were... My oldest was 13. And... Jacob 11, Trevor 10, and Carmen was only eight.

Oh, gosh. It was when Jacob was kidnapped, I As you said, I was a stay-at-home mom. I knew nothing about child victimization. Who would do that? I mean, it was out of my realm of consciousness. It was like the rug being pulled out from under you. So I had no foundation to stand on. And our kids were... My oldest was 13. And... Jacob 11, Trevor 10, and Carmen was only eight.

So, you know, immediately everybody, everybody was sick. Carmen regressed a bit, started sucking her thumb again. And, you know, just the stability of, of our lives was, was shaken to the, to the core. So it was a matter of rebuilding and finding something you could, could hang on to, to, to move forward. And The hope is a critical ingredient in life.

So, you know, immediately everybody, everybody was sick. Carmen regressed a bit, started sucking her thumb again. And, you know, just the stability of, of our lives was, was shaken to the, to the core. So it was a matter of rebuilding and finding something you could, could hang on to, to, to move forward. And The hope is a critical ingredient in life.

We had to hope and believe that Jacob was going to be okay and he was coming home. And I worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and they told us, kids come home, don't give up. And So that became a critical part of it for me physically, I'm diabetic. So I had been diabetic for, I don't know, five years.

We had to hope and believe that Jacob was going to be okay and he was coming home. And I worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and they told us, kids come home, don't give up. And So that became a critical part of it for me physically, I'm diabetic. So I had been diabetic for, I don't know, five years.

And the physical change, the stress, you know, can just send sugar levels soaring. And I knew that if I wanted to find Jacob, if I wanted to be there for my family, I had to take care of myself and rebuild strength. Yeah. step by step. And we got a lot of support from surprisingly law enforcement. I was probably driving them crazy, standing over their shoulder.

And the physical change, the stress, you know, can just send sugar levels soaring. And I knew that if I wanted to find Jacob, if I wanted to be there for my family, I had to take care of myself and rebuild strength. Yeah. step by step. And we got a lot of support from surprisingly law enforcement. I was probably driving them crazy, standing over their shoulder.

And it's like, you need to work out. What did you used to do? And I used to dance and it's like nothing inside of me wanted to dance again. So I started running a little bit and swimming. I was sharing with you, a friend of mine was in charge of worked in the FIAD department at Cold Spring High School.

And it's like, you need to work out. What did you used to do? And I used to dance and it's like nothing inside of me wanted to dance again. So I started running a little bit and swimming. I was sharing with you, a friend of mine was in charge of worked in the FIAD department at Cold Spring High School.

So she would open up the pool and let me swim in that pool, just laps for as long as I needed to. And it was brilliant. I teased her about needing a new filter to get rid of the stress that I'd left behind. But physically moving was a big part of us regaining strength.

So she would open up the pool and let me swim in that pool, just laps for as long as I needed to. And it was brilliant. I teased her about needing a new filter to get rid of the stress that I'd left behind. But physically moving was a big part of us regaining strength.

Yes. And in the other piece that, you know, we had to, we had to coach our kids with was, you know, so much about health is it's, it's physical, mental and spiritual. And sometimes kids would say mean things, you know, like my mom says he's dead and you should move on. And so we would have family discussions about how do you respond to They're not meant to be mean, but it can sound.

Yes. And in the other piece that, you know, we had to, we had to coach our kids with was, you know, so much about health is it's, it's physical, mental and spiritual. And sometimes kids would say mean things, you know, like my mom says he's dead and you should move on. And so we would have family discussions about how do you respond to They're not meant to be mean, but it can sound.

And it caught my daughter, the youngest, off guard. I had to go pick her up from a camp. because somebody had said some things that she just wasn't ready to hear. And she ended up with a stomach ache and the nurse called and I had to, you know, retrieve her from that.

And it caught my daughter, the youngest, off guard. I had to go pick her up from a camp. because somebody had said some things that she just wasn't ready to hear. And she ended up with a stomach ache and the nurse called and I had to, you know, retrieve her from that.

So we would get, we would empower our kids with, you know, well, that's not what we think, or you don't really know that, or I think I'll go over here, you know, just some way to get out of a situation. So we, we had a lot of family discussions. We had a lot of counseling. I had been seeking at that point in time, I had been a teacher.

So we would get, we would empower our kids with, you know, well, that's not what we think, or you don't really know that, or I think I'll go over here, you know, just some way to get out of a situation. So we, we had a lot of family discussions. We had a lot of counseling. I had been seeking at that point in time, I had been a teacher.