From foster care to fire cadet, man doesn't give up dream to help others
He spent years in a group home and foster care, but Noah Patrick never gave up on a dream.
"I really love to help people," Patrick said.
Patrick, 19, is a cadet training to be a Milwaukee firefighter. He's on a path to success despite a very difficult childhood.
"The house was never clean. There was no food to eat. My brother got abused. I got abused, physically and emotionally. I just saw my dad abuse my mom and stuff like that; it still affects me today," Patrick said.
Patrick went to a group home at age 13 and then foster care.
"I had a great foster mom. She took care of me. She led me down the right path," he said.
But at 18-years-old, he aged out of the system.
With help from social service agency Lad Lake, he signed up to be a cadet.
The state of Wisconsin said three out of four kids like Patrick will wind up homeless, and most don't even finish school.
"I remember on one of my worst days at home, firefighters came because domestic abuse (was reported), they had to respond. They helped my mom out," Patrick said. "They looked like they actually cared about what was going on, and I want to be that guy one day who walks into that situation and makes that child feel like it's OK, someone's there to help you."
Patrick and five other former foster kids were getting their Lad Lake scholarships during a ceremony Thursday night at the Milwaukee County Zoo.