Pajama Program Mission The Need is Great. There are more than 500,000 children in the foster care system in the U.S. and more than 1 million children who are not living with their natural parents. These children have been through great upheaval and trauma, without exception. So many of these children are living in shelters and group homes and too often are shuffled from one temporary home to another. Many of these youngsters have been abused or abandoned, and in many cases, have never enjoyed the simple comfort of having a mother or father tuck them in at bedtime and read to them to encourage an early educational experience. They have fallen behind in their reading skills and no longer have access to books to read on a regular basis. They have been removed from school for months at a time with no continuation of their reading practice. Through the Pajama Program, we are contributing to a warmer, more loving and supportive reading environment for these special children.