Paul Coleman III was a sweet and loving child, who had a smile that could light up any room and a laugh that was incredibly contagious. He had Fragile X Syndrome and was non-verbal, but he didn’t let that hold him back. Paul taught people that words aren’t always necessary to communicate. He loved Dr. Seuss and Eric Carle books, Curious George, Barney, and The Wiggles. He enjoyed when someone read or sang to him. He adored traveling, especially seeing the sights and hearing the sounds in every city.

At the age of 10, Paul began experiencing vision and balance issues in 2011 but it wasn’t until the morning of May 21, 2011 that Paul’s family knew something serious was wrong. When Paul’s father woke him up that morning, Paul’s left eye was turned to the left and he couldn’t stand up. Thinking Paul had suffered a stroke or seizure, his father rushed him to Texas Children’s Hospital where he was diagnosed with DIPG, an inoperable and aggressive type of brain cancer. After diagnosis, Paul remained happy and never let anything bring him down. He went through treatment and continued to attend school and music therapy. During his treatment, Paul often used his charm to get his nurses and the hospital cafeteria staff to read books to him and, much to Paul’s delight, they even turned “Green Eggs and Ham” into a rap song.

Despite how he felt, Paul continued to press on. He battled valiantly for 22 months before he passed on March 23, 2013 at the age of 12. Paul was a special needs child who was definitely special in every way. Today, he is remembered for the love and joy that he brought to this world.

"Every breakthrough in pediatric brain cancer research brings us one step closer to the cure. And although it is too late for Paul, funding this research is the only way to one day prevent children from suffering the same fate." - The Coleman Family

Thank you for choosing to donate to The Cure Starts Now Foundation. 100% of this donation, after credit card processing fees, goes directly towards research to find the homerun cure for cancer starting with pediatric brain cancer research.

If you would like to make a donation by mail please send a check to:  The Cure Starts Now Foundation; 10280 Chester Road; Cincinnati, OH 45215 and put the child's name in the memo.

The family receives notification of all donations made to this tribute fund automatically.