The Julian Boivin Courage for Cures Foundation exists to raise awareness, support research, and provide funds to kids fighting deadly brain cancers. The foundation was founded in March 2011 in honor of 5-year-old Julian Boivin of Bloomfield Hills as he battled a deadly brain stem glioma. Upon losing Julian only seven months after his diagnosis, his parents, Brad and Nettie Boivin, established the foundation to seek out partnerships and research dedicated to finding cures for brain tumors like Julian’s. Their hope is to play a small role in putting an end to what they say are the most unacceptable words a family can receive: “No known cause or cure.” To date, the foundation has raised $1 million for research, awareness, clinical trials, and patient programs. The organization is completely volunteer based, and all of the money donated has been given directly to the hospitals that treated Julian, including St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, the University of Michigan Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor, and The Chad Carr Pediatric Brain Tumor Center in Ann Arbor.
