Faces


or Joel L.A. Peterson this article brings a nearly 40-year story full circle.


In the 1960s, an article in The


Lutheran prompted a Minnesota family to adopt an orphaned child of a Korean woman and an American GI. Aileen and Ellery Peterson already had four chil- dren, but the story resonated with feel- ings that they could—and should—do more to help someone in need. Across the world a 6-year-old bira-


cial, destitute boy had no idea about this revelation, but soon he would through the global reach of Lutheran Social Ser- vices and the faith of a Lutheran family. ELCA member Joel Peterson remem-


bers flying from Korea to his new home in Minnesota. He also recalls how his new family’s congre- gation, First Lutheran in St. Peter, welcomed him, including his pastor Herbert Chilstrom, who was later elected ELCA presiding bishop. Decades later, Peterson used events of his life as the basis


of a fictional story, Dreams of My Mothers: A Story of Love Transcendent. The story concerns two mothers, one Korean and one American, and how their tumultuous lives intersect. The idea for the book came from an unlikely source.


“Bishop Chilstrom, who baptized me, came out with a book and I contacted him to congratulate him,” Peterson said. “He [and wife Corrine] adopted children and thought I would have a perspective on the subject of international adoption that I could share.” Chilstrom then connected Peterson with his publisher,


Bill Huff. Last spring Huff asked Peterson to write a sam- ple chapter and outline, which didn’t exactly fit into Peter-


100 + birthdays


By Jeff Favre


A life on the page from dreams of mothers F


Joel L.A. Peterson’s book is based on his experiences as a child adopted from Korea.


son’s current job descriptions. He is the founder and CEO of an educational support services company and the man- aging partner of a mergers and acquisi- tions corporation. On top of his work, Peterson was also taking classes for a doctorate degree. “I wrote at nights and on weekends,


and I came up with about 8,000 words,” Peterson said. “They liked it and asked if I could turn 8,000 into about 130,000.” Peterson’s inspiration to make the


story universal was to focus on relation- ships with mothers. “Most people never really know their mothers more than sim-


ply mom, and not the complex people that they are,” he said. During the writing process Peterson showed his work to


family members (his mother died several years ago) to make sure he wasn’t covering a sensitive topic in a way that any of them found offensive. Within four months the manuscript was complete. The book became widely available to the pub- lic in March (www.facebook.com/dreamsofmymothers and www.dreamsofmymothers.com). Peterson’s faith is visible throughout the book. “I am living proof of the faith that my parents embodied,”


he said. “They taught me that God acts through all of us. And one thing I learned is that all of us are cre- ated in the image of God. We are all equally valuable in the eyes of God.” 


Author bio: Favre is an assistant professor at Pierce College in Los Angeles and a freelance theater critic.


103: Irene Frederick, Trinity, Perkasie, Pa.; Ephraim Solyst, Kerkhoven, Kerkhoven, Minn. 102: Mable Baker, St. Paul, Northboro, Iowa; Mary Reimers, Birka, Washburn, N.D.; Mavis Thompson, Holy Trinity, Falls Church, Va. 101: Helen Arntson, Bethlehem, Traverse City, Mich.; Ruth Peterson, Gethsemane, Wallace, Mich. 100: Ella Berquist, Resurrec-


tion, Granite Bay, Calif.; Marion Bregi, Bethlehem, Traverse City, Mich.; R. David Frey, Mes- siah, South Williamsport, Pa.; Doris Roberts, Advent, Madison, Wis.; Blanche Saaranen, Sylvan Lake, West Bloomfield, Mich.; Violet Skogen, Our Savior, Hillsboro, N.D.


Send stories Share your stories of ELCA Lutherans and your 100+ members in “Faces.” Send to lutheran@thelutheran.org or “Faces,” The Lutheran, 8765 W. Hig gins Rd., Chicago, IL 60631.


April 2015 43


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