(Photos by WJON.com's Jim Maurice)

Wetterling's host concert honoring Jacob
by Jim Maurice, WJON.com

ST. JOSEPH -- Jacob's Hope was kept alive in St. Joseph on Saturday night. 

An auditorium was filled with kids younger than Jacob Wetterling when he was abducted, and young adults who weren't even born yet. But there was also plenty of adults in the audience who remember exactly where they were when they got the news an 11-year-old boy had been snatched from a rural Stearns Co. Road.

The Wetterling family hosted a celebration in honor of their son on Saturday night. It was a rollercoaster of emotion, from the smiles when Patty sang a duet with children's performer Red Grammer.

To tears when Patty and Jerry read from a book about Jacob they had written for their grandchildren.

This coming Thursday will mark the 20-year anniversary of when Jacob was abducted. The Wetterling family chose this very public event in St. Joseph to help celebrate the life of their son, brother, and uncle.

AUDIO:  For an audio version of this story click on the player below.