The “hero’s” foster mother, her adopted daughter (11) and disabled son (32), victims of a terrible murder and suicide

An adoptive mother, her disabled son and her adopted 11-year-old daughter died by suicide outside Cincinnati on Thursday.

Pat McCollum, 77, was a pillar of strength in the community and was described as a “local hero” as she raised more than 70 children over 20 years.

She was found dead along with her adopted son DJ McCollum, 32, and Kaydence McCollum, 11, in the College Hill area of ​​the city after police received multiple calls from concerned neighbors.

Before officers arrived, suspect Anthony Mathis, 66, had retreated into the house – still armed with a knife.

This led to a SWAT team being called, but they were stopped by Mathis and forced to negotiate with him for several hours before they were able to get into the house.

Mathis was found with self-inflicted stab wounds, while the McCollums died from the stab wounds.

Investigators have not said what led to the killings, but court records show he saw Cincinnati.com show that Mathis was charged with strangulation in connection with an alleged incident involving Patricia last year.

Mathis was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center but later died from his own injuries.

The Hamilton County Coroner’s Office said Mathis’ death was a suicide, while the remaining deaths are being treated as homicides.

DJ was adopted by Pat McCollum when he was a toddler, at the age of seven.

As an infant, he suffered a serious disability after an older child dropped a lit match in his crib. He suffered burns on 85 percent of his body, lost all his limbs and was in a wheelchair.

McCollum eventually adopted him at age 10 in 2002 and continued his recovery. She eventually got to see DJ walk on prosthetic legs and graduate from Woodward High School.

There was such a strong bond between her and DJ that in a 2012 interview she said she expected him to live with her for the rest of her life.

– Either I die first or he dies. I will never part with him,” she said.

McCollum, a longtime member of New Jerusalem Baptist Church, specializing in the care of children with special needs.

In the more than twenty years she has been a foster parent, she has adopted at least four children.

She gained this experience while caring for children whom she later taught at college, where she trained new foster parents.

She herself earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work from the University of Cincinnati.

McCollum, who never married, raised more than 70 children over two decades and adopted at least four.

According to her pastor, the Rev. Damon Lynch Jr., she was also a longtime member of New Jerusalem Baptist Church.

“She was a great mother and good to the kids,” the Rev. Damon Lynch Jr. said Questioningnoting that she often arrived with several children by her side.

Other community members praised McCollum for what she did.

‘SM. Pat truly touched the lives of so many; advocating for and caring for hundreds of children placed in foster care, adopting, loving and continuing to love and support these children and their families once they return home,” Amy Marie wrote on Facebook.

A GoFundMe page has been set up for help pay for the burialof three killed.

“Memaw, Pat for the People, Patricia McCollum, Social Worker, Guardian Ad Litem, Attorney, City and State Trauma Trainer, and Foster Family Trainer” – a tribute to her readings.

“She was a friend, a former teen mom, Cincinnati’s first black Playboy bunny; She was a hero. She advocated for foster youth, trauma victims, people with disabilities, and teen parents as a board member of Rosemary’s Babies Co.

“She was president of The Black Social Workers and a member of POCWA. She helped obtain licenses for 1,000 foster parents.

“She lived her life serving and loving; this is her LEGACY. He leaves this life less than a week before his 78th birthday.