It was October 7, 1967
The festival in Filbert Ridge, Oregon, came early, and many wondered if they had followed the usual tradition of celebrating the hazelnut harvest on the second Saturday of October, perhaps things would have gone in a different direction.
Instead, town history and the lives of its citizens changed forever.
That was the day little Stephen McMillan disappeared.
—The Filbert Ridge Miracle
Patrick McMillan is the pastor of The Lord Is My Shepherd church. When his youngest daughter raises the dead in the church parking lot, everyone shows their true colors; after all, who would want the meanest man in church to rise from the cement? The event brings up the past, the cold case of the pastor’s missing son, Stephen McMillan. The family is back in the headlines again, and everyone has an opinion.
I took nearly two decades to write The Filbert Ridge Miracle because I was raising children of my own. Anyone have runaway children—you know, toddlers who slip outside, never checking in to see where you are, or perhaps wanting to go for a car ride with strangers? The inspiration for The Filbert Ridge Miracle began when my toddler son escaped our home.
We worked at a mini storage and lived on-site. Someone buzzed at 7:30 a.m., and I took a payment so they could enter the gate. During this moment, my son somehow escaped. I had a few moments of sheer panic before a lady from Lamps Plus was carrying him inside my office. He had walked all the way to D building in his bare feet and pajamas.
The other part of the story comes from a lifetime of attending church. I’ve navigated different denominations and discomforts. I was dropped off at church as a child when my parents quit going, and I no longer felt safe. I didn’t like children’s church and had no adult to turn to after suffering through all the things a typical child is supposed to find fun.
All of the church experiences in The Filbert Ridge Miracle are fictional, but no matter where you go, people are people, and they don’t come to church because they are perfect. You might not find more perfection at church than you would at the grocery store. You may expect more from your fellow churchgoers, but it’s probably best not to.
Filbert Ridge is adapted from a small part of Oregon called Gales Creek. My grandparents lived there, and it was my favorite place. I’d hike to the top of the hill where the rows of filbert trees were lined up, and I could climb into them with my radio. They have the yearly strawberry festival in June, which I changed to a filbert festival in October. I took the woods, the creek, and the country store and added a whole downtown for my fictional tale.
Right now it’s filbert season in the Pacific Northwest. The pumpkin is getting all the glory, but don’t forget the hazelnuts and pair them with your favorite chocolate.
Thank you, Julie, for letting me be part of Throwback Thursday!
Future books: I have a cozy mystery scheduled to come out in the summer of 2027 with WordCrafts Press.
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Tamelia Aday loves to write while surrounded by chocolate, coffee, and her two cats. Her debut novel, The Filbert Ridge Miracle, is what she likes to refer to as “Miracle Fiction.” A little bit of the power of God woven into everyday life. Words are her playground and she loves unscrambling them to paint pictures, create landscapes sprinkled with amusing thoughts, and tell a story. Her favorite conversations involve books and writing, and she enjoys connecting with readers.
Tamelia is currently working on her second novel and also her first cozy mystery, which of course involves a cat.
The Pacific Northwest is her home. She is married with three sons, two are adults and the youngest is in high school.
