He was a big boy with a big heart, one that touched and inspired many people even after he tragically died just two days before Christmas.

At his death a few days after tumor surgery, Noah Oswalt, 9, carried about 240 pounds on his 5-foot-5 frame. He was a towering fourth-grader who endured a host of medical ailments and emotional problems related to his weight — and the teasing he got for it. But Noah didn't let that dampen his spirit and generosity.

"He was a big teddy bear," said McCully resident Jason Oswalt, 37, his father. "He had the biggest heart."

Noah's life will be celebrated this morning in a memorial service and his ashes will be scattered at a favorite play spot in Manoa. His name will carry on through a planned multi-agency program to help obese and other at-risk school children. Since Noah's death, those planning the program have decided to call it Noah's Journey to Health, in tribute to the big boy with the big heart.

"He had a really sweet, soft spot in him," said Malachy Grange, a public health nurse who started working with Noah in February and is helping organize the multi-agency program. "He really was kind of like a role model."

A few weeks before his death, doctors discovered that the Lunalilo Elementary School student had a brain tumor and two spinal tumors that helped explain his lifelong weight problem, his slow metabolism, the severe anxiety attacks he often suffered, his raspy voice (from a partially paralyzed vocal chord) and other problems that contributed to his difficulty in fitting in with peers.

Before the tumors were discovered, Noah had endured numerous medical tests in Atlanta, where his family lived before moving to Hawai'i two years ago, and in Honolulu. But none pinpointed the tumors.

Noah probably had the brain tumor since birth, doctors told the family. The spinal condition likely developed later.

The news about the tumors came as a major relief to Noah, his father said. The boy realized his obesity was not due to his behavior.

"He thought they were his saving grace — that the weight wasn't his fault," Jason said.

And Noah, who was mostly a homebody and loved to play video games and bake, saw his Dec. 18 surgery as the ticket to a normal life.

LIFE TURNING AROUND

The operation went well, the brain tumor and most of the spinal tumors were removed, and Noah seemed to bounce back more quickly than doctors anticipated.

He so looked forward to his new life that his father said Noah would spend hours in his hospital recovery bed listening again and again to "This Is Me," a song from the movie "Camp Rock," on his iPod. Part of the chorus: "This is real, this is me/I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be, now."

Each time, Noah would stop listening to the song only when the iPod battery died three hours later, his father said.

But the night before Christmas Eve, while he was still recovering at Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women & Children, Noah's brain unexpectedly started hemorrhaging, and he didn't survive the night.

In early December, before the tumors were discovered, Grange and school officials met to discuss Noah's case, and everyone marveled at how much progress he had made over the past year.

Noah had become less withdrawn, he was eating more healthy foods, exercising more, and his body mass index had dropped significantly. He participated in a "turkey trot" fund-raiser, helped bake blueberry muffins for his classmates and became a class clown of sorts, enjoying making people laugh.

"He really did begin to blossom," said Amy Kantrowitz, Lunalilo's vice principal.

"He had the willingness to work on this (weight problem) and try to change," Grange said. "He did the counseling. He did the hard work. Even though he was still obese, he was making remarkable progress."

'THIS IS ME'

Using Noah's case as inspiration, Grange and others said discussions about founding Noah's Journey to Health have picked up momentum. The details are still to be worked out, but Grange expects a major part of the program will focus on the serious problem of obesity among school-age children.

For now, however, Noah's family, including mother Jerri, 37, and brother Kyle, 13, are just trying to get through today's funeral.

Because Jason currently is unemployed, the family is having a tough time with funeral expenses. A fund at Bank of Hawaii has been established for those wishing to help.

At today's service, "This Is Me" will be prominently featured:

"Now I've found who I am

There's no way to hold it in

No more hiding who I want to be

This is me"