09/19/2025
In the 1980s, Paul and Kris Scharaun met at a dance for people with disabilities. She wore a simple dress, but her smile lit up the room; he, shy at first, couldn’t stop looking her way.
Both had Down syndrome, but that night there were no labels—only two young people drawn to each other.
Their first dance was clumsy but full of laughter, and that evening a love story began that would defy time and prejudice.
For years they dated, taking trips, walking hand in hand, and spending evenings watching their favorite NASCAR races. Paul was steady and protective; Kris was outgoing and social, the heartbeat of their pair. In 1988, they decided to marry.
At the time, it was rare for two adults with Down syndrome to wed. Some even told Kris she “would never be a wife.” She just smiled and proved them wrong.
They exchanged vows in a small church in upstate New York, surrounded by friends and family. Their marriage became one of the longest-lasting among couples with Down syndrome, enduring for more than 25 years.
Together they built a life of quiet joy—working in inclusive jobs (Paul at a distribution center, Kris in a community assistance program), volunteering locally, and cherishing small rituals: mountain trips, homemade birthday cakes, and the Valentine’s card Kris always left for Paul on the kitchen table. These weren’t grand gestures, but steady, loving acts that stitched their life together.
Their bond was tested when Paul, in his early sixties, developed early-onset dementia. Roles reversed. Kris, battling diabetes herself, became his daily caretaker—managing his medicine, offering comfort, and remaining the one familiar face in his fading world.
Knowing their time was short, they chose to renew their vows. In a quiet chapel filled with tears and love, they repeated the same promise they’d made decades earlier. Paul passed away a year later.
Kris had once been told she would never marry, never know real happiness. Instead, she married the same man twice, lived a love both ordinary and extraordinary, and built a marriage that defied statistics and prejudice.
They were happy—for so, so long.
Their story reminds us that true love knows no limits—not of age, health, or condition. It is simply two hearts brave enough to promise each other forever, and to keep that promise every single day.
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