Foster mother to 126 children, founded Children Together, a pilot program to allow siblings to stay together. Twenty-six years ago, Pat Chisholm. now a mother of 5 and grandmother of 10 and her husband Bill decided to become foster parents. In that time, the Chisholms have cared for children with a variety of backgrounds, some of whom were severely handicapped or drug addicted. In addition to undergoing rigorous training to become state certified “teaching parents,” Pat and Bill were selected to participate in “Quest for Excellence,” a program which gathered information about outstanding parents. by 1989, this program resulted in a book entitled Back to the Family by Dr. Ray Guarandi. And, that same year, the Chisholms were honored by the National State Teachers of the Year as a successful family. Today they are caring for their 126yh foster child, 7-month old Daquan, a drug-addicted infant who is now thriving.

For traumatized youngsters who’ve been uprooted from their homes, Pat campaigned for three years to establish Children Together, a pilot program for siblings to stay in foster homes temporarily until caseworkers can locate a permanent placement. Today, the Children Together home in South Orange, provides a haven for up tp 12 foster children, with full-time house parents, a social worker and support staff.

Despite two bouts with cancer, Pat’s recent accomplishment was in creating Just Babies, a project to place “border babies” — many of whom are drug or alcohol-addicted — into nurturing homes as quickly as possible. Pat’s unflagging mission in life has been the welfare of children,