They called him Mr. Cheeks for the frequent, easy smiles that stretched across his face. Alan was diagnosed with a rare sarcoma in his hip at 17 months old, but for the five short years he graced this earth, Alan was pure joy. He was such an active, engaged child that it was hard to keep him occupied during long hospital stays. “Alan was unstoppable,” his mom says. He learned to walk three times in his short life: as a toddler, as his hip recovered from the tumor damage, and again after having his hip removed. Alan loved monochromatic animals – penguins, zebras and pandas. He loved reading, learning, and exploring. But most of all, Alan loved numbers – counting them, adding them, punching them into his calculator, pressing them on the elevator. Alan couldn’t wait to go to school like his big brother and biggest hero, Kevin. When his first day of preschool finally arrived, he cried when it was time to go home. Alan passed away on January 17, 2013, after battling cancer for most of his life. Alan’s parents vowed to continue the fight through the Hero Fund they established at St. Baldrick’s in his name. Alan’s life was far too short, but his bright light shines on through the countless lives he touched, in the research for a cure that is funded in his memory, and in the hope that the research gives to the children and families who follow in his footsteps. To read more about Alan's story, please visit his blog at http://www.mistercheeks.blogspot.com. Alan has also been chosen as a 2014 St. Baldrick's Ambassador.